I had lost all sensation and was waiting for my consciousness to fade away completely, but the static-like noise refused to stop.

Was this what death felt like?

Then again, my mind was strangely clear.

…Huh?

Come to think of it…

I could feel my body.

I’d assumed all feeling had disappeared because the pain in the back of my head was gone, but…

My hand moved.

If that’s the case…

I can still kill Hayato.

First, I needed to figure out what was going on.

I slowly cracked one eye open, but the light was so bright that I couldn’t see clearly.

As my eyes gradually adjusted, I found myself staring at the unfamiliar faces of several children.

“!?”

“!!!!”

The moment my eyes flew open in surprise, the four kids who had been peering down at me all stumbled backward.

I’d collapsed in an awkward position, yet I was lying flat on my back.

Did they think I was dead and carry me outside?

I tried to sit up.

Apparently, I had been lying on something with a drop-off beside it.

My right hand reached out for support but found only empty air.

Before I knew it—

Splash!

I fell straight into the water.

Fortunately, it was barely a meter deep, so nothing happened.

Still…

Diving into water the moment you wake up is a great way to drown.

Once I realized how shallow it was and stood up, I saw the kids sprinting away.

They were already quite a distance from me.

“Haa…”

After taking a moment to assess the situation, I realized the static-like noise had been coming from a fountain.

Naturally, that fountain was what I’d just fallen into.

Apparently, someone had laid me on the edge of it.

My sweatpants had soaked up so much water that they felt incredibly heavy.

Thankfully, I was only wearing a T-shirt and a track jacket on top.

Those would dry eventually.

At least the water was clean.

The place I was in looked like a park…

No.

There wasn’t much besides the fountain and a few trees.

Calling it a fountain plaza felt more accurate.

Either way, I’d never seen this place before.

Come to think of it…

The pain in the back of my head was gone.

I reached back to check.

Not only was there no blood…

There wasn’t even a bump.

It was hard to believe I’d been unconscious long enough for an injury like that to heal completely.

Could this really be the afterlife?

It might just be a dream.

Honestly, I had no idea.

For now, I’d just wait and see.

More importantly…

That tiny black speck lingering at the edge of my vision had been irritating me this whole time.

When I focused on it, information suddenly poured directly into my mind.

Kamino Chikara — Age 16

Human — Level 1

Status Ailments: None

Skills: [Observation Eye] [Forbidden Magic: Wrath]

Divine Blessing: [Affection]

Even more information—something like status values—flowed into my head.

Had getting hit in the back of the head scrambled my brain?

“This is just like a game…”

As I struggled to get used to information being transmitted directly into my brain, two gauges labeled MP and PP appeared in my field of vision.

The level, skills, and status information from earlier had also become visible.

Apparently, I could manipulate them with nothing more than my thoughts.

Without thinking too much about it, I selected the skill called [Forbidden Magic: Wrath].

A fairly lengthy description appeared.

“If I read this, can I use magic?”

Whether this was the afterlife or just a dream…

If magic existed, of course I’d want to try using it.

I still had almost no grasp of my current situation.

Even so, I made excuses to myself that there was nothing wrong with trying it out of curiosity and began the incantation.

“I pray…”

“With the ancient power…”

“Let overwhelming emotion…”

The MP gauge at the edge of my vision started draining at an incredible rate.

In the blink of an eye, it hit zero.

When I tried to continue, even my PP gauge began decreasing.

At the same time, my body grew unbearably sluggish.

Sensing real danger, I immediately stopped chanting.

“Maybe… I just don’t have any talent for magic?”

No.

It’s called Forbidden Magic.

That probably means this spell is just something special.

Yeah…

That had to be it.

I wanted to believe that.

Judging by how quickly it had dropped, MP was probably magical energy.

But what was PP?

It had already been slightly depleted when I first checked my status.

Since my body became sluggish as it decreased…

Was it something like stamina?

Oh, right.

There was one other skill.

I tried selecting it, but nothing happened.

Since it was called Observation Eye, did I have to look at something before it activated?

Or maybe it was always active?

“…More importantly, I should stop messing around and figure out where I am.”

I climbed out of the fountain and started walking toward the massive building I could see in the distance.

After walking for about ten minutes, I arrived somewhere bustling with activity.

Rows of shops lined the streets.

There were even food stalls.

The sense of wrongness was overwhelming.

I’d already suspected it.

That was probably why I’d convinced myself this was either the afterlife or a dream.

First of all…

The people were strange.

If someone merely had slightly pointed ears, I could accept that.

But people with animal ears growing from their heads…

And tails…

Nothing like that existed in my knowledge except in fictional worlds.

Then there was the writing.

I couldn’t read a single word.

There were symbols on the shop signs and storefronts.

They were probably this world’s language.

To me, they were nothing but meaningless patterns I’d never seen before.

Yet somehow…

I could understand everyone perfectly.

The old man at one stall.

The cat-eared women chatting nearby.

For some reason, everything they said sounded like Japanese.

Well…

At least I should be grateful that the language barrier wasn’t a problem.

“For now… I’m getting a little hungry.”

A stall selling grilled meat skewers caught my eye.

I decided to buy one.

“Hey, old man.”

“How much for one?”

“Welcome!”

“These skewers are five copper coins each.”

“The premium ones over here are ten copper coins!”

“…Copper coins?”

I reached into my pocket for my wallet.

Wait…

It’s completely soaked!

I pulled out five ten-yen coins and handed them over.

“Thanks for your—”

“…Huh?”

“What the heck are these!?”

“I don’t know what country’s money this is, but we don’t accept it here!”

“You’ll need copper coins from the Kingdom of Alfumina!”

I’d never even heard of that country.

Well…

I hadn’t seriously expected to buy a meat skewer for fifty yen anyway.

“The truth is, I don’t have any money from this country.”

“Is there any kind of job foreigners can do to earn some?”

“Huh!?”

The already intimidating old man furrowed his brow and looked me up and down.

That’s no way to treat a customer…

Then again…

I wasn’t really a customer if I didn’t have any money.

“I’ll admit…”

“Those clothes of yours aren’t anything I’ve ever seen.”

“If you’re looking for work anyone can do…”

“Becoming an adventurer is probably your best bet.”

All right.

Time to accept reality.

Not only was this not Japan…

It wasn’t even somewhere on Earth.

If this was a dream, I’d need money until I woke up.

If it was the afterlife, I’d need money until whatever came next.

Either way…

If I wanted to survive, I’d have to work.

“How do I become one?”

The old man pointed toward a massive building a short distance away.

It wasn’t quite the size of a castle, but it was large enough to stand out even from here.

“That’s the Adventurers’ Guild.”

“Just ask the receptionist inside.”

He’d been kind enough to help me even though I wasn’t buying anything.

Once I earned some money…

I’d definitely come back here.

“Thanks!”

After thanking the old man, I headed toward the Adventurers’ Guild.