Everything fell into place like a cruel joke.
He grinned behind his shadowed mask. "So yeah, I killed you. But you were already marked. I just got there first."
I slumped even lower, if that was possible. My voice was hollow now. "You seriously think that makes it better?"
He shrugged, nonchalant. "Not really. But I figured it was worth mentioning. I mean, perspective is everything, right?"
I wanted to curse him again. But what was the point?
He was right.
I was already dead.
The only question now was... what did he plan to do with the corpse?
But even more important than any of that was a single, sharp thought that sliced through my head like a guillotine:
'What about Kenji?'
Would they leave him alone now that I was gone? I was dead, right? That should be the end of it. I was the one they wanted. Surely, they wouldn't go after a kid.
Right?
The man—no, the thing across the table—glanced at me. Almost as if he heard my thoughts.
He spoke plainly. Coldly. "Yeah, he won't be spared. Ten days after your death, without a doubt, he dies. And let me assure you… it won't be peaceful. It'll be slow. Cruel. Painful. A proper message."
My heart—or whatever this ghostly existence had in place of one—squeezed painfully.
I jumped up. "SEND ME BACK!! RIGHT NOW!!"
He waved his hand lazily, as if brushing off an overreacting child. "Calm down, big brother. Even if you went back right this moment, you wouldn't be able to change anything. You'd just die again—this time alongside him. Two bodies. No results. Just tragedy."
I clenched my fists. "Then what the hell do you want me to do?! Sit here in your twisted afterlife lounge while my brother is going to—IS GOING TO FUCKING DIE?!"
He shook his head with a theatrical sigh, dramatically placing a hand over his heart. "No, no. That's not what I want from you. I want you to give me something much more precious…"
His tone sharpened. "I want a fulfilling ending for this world."
I scoffed. "Fuck your ending—"
He raised a single hand.
"Let me finish my sentence before you go all high and mighty on me."
I swallowed back the words burning at the back of my throat, forcing myself to nod. "...Alright. Go on. Sorry for blowing up."
He chuckled, apparently delighted by my restraint. "See? Now that's the kind of situational awareness I like. You understand your position. Good."
He leaned forward, his smile widening. "So here's the offer. You work for me. No salary, no benefits, just pure labor. You do your best to change the tragic fate of the world I send you to. Along the way, you'll get powers—whatever the world gives you, you keep. And if you succeed, I'll send you back. Right to the moment before your death."
My mind blanked for a second.
What?
I blinked slowly. "You're… going to send me back? Like, back-back? To my old life?"
He nodded. "Right before the moment everything fell apart. You'll return with all your memories. And if you play your cards right, maybe even with a few extras."
I stared at him. This guy was beyond shady. And yet… the offer wasn't just tempting. It was everything. If there was even a chance to save Kenji…
I'd take it. A hundred times over.
Honestly, I didn't have a choice, did I?
An ant doesn't get to negotiate with the boot about to crush it.
I nodded slowly. "Okay. I'll do it."
He clapped once, the sound echoing like thunder in a dead sky. "Now that's the spirit! I knew you had it in you. See? You just needed a little motivation."
His expression turned serious, though a glint of amusement still danced in his eyes. "Now let's talk logistics. While you're playing extra in this little sandbox of Nyx, there are a few things you should know."
I leaned forward cautiously. "Such as?"
He sipped his tea before continuing. "First off, this world you're entering? It's cursed. Tragic by design. But that's all you know right now, and going in blind doesn't help anyone. So, I'll be generous—I'll give you a 'system.'"
I frowned. "A system?"
He nodded. "Think of it like a scoreboard, but with achievement mechanics. You won't get flashy abilities or spells from it—this isn't a cheat menu. It's more like… a glorified stat tracker. It'll notify you when you accomplish something significant. Especially when you start steering the story away from its destined tragedy."
I crossed my arms. "So basically, it's useless."
He wagged a finger. "Ah-ah! Not quite. While I can't hand out abilities directly, I can reward you with titles. And those titles? They come with passive effects. Subtle, but powerful. Things like better perception, boosted memory, enhanced reaction speed… that sort of thing."
Passive effects, huh?
In most games, passive skills were busted. Quietly broken. If I could stack enough of them, I might be able to compensate for a lack of flashy powers.
Still, I didn't like the idea of wandering around clueless.
"That's helpful, I guess," I admitted. "But can you at least tell me something about the story? What am I supposed to change?"
He gave me an apologetic shrug. "Wish I could. But I don't know the full plot myself. Nyx is the one who writes these stories. I just pick the lucky—or unlucky—contestants."
So they can casually create worlds, huh. Nice and I was going in blind. Fantastic.
No script. No map. No idea who the villains or heroes were. Just an unknowable world filled with suffering.
"Great," I muttered. "So it's like real life then. You just get dumped in and hope to God your instincts are right."
He laughed, clearly entertained. "Exactly! It's the ultimate improv challenge."
I looked up at him and smiled—mocking, lopsided, insincere. "I don't like it."
He let out a small chuckle, unapologetic. "Not my problem."
I laughed too. Not out of joy, but in that twisted, almost unhinged way you do when life throws another absurdity your way.
If I had eyes in this weird liminal space, they'd definitely be narrow slits by now. Snake-like. Predatory.
But then, in the silence that followed, I let out an inward sigh. Not one of defeat.
One of hope.
Kenji.
There was still a path, however narrow, that led to him. To saving him. That one thought brought with it a strange kind of peace.
The swirling fear that had taken root since I'd heard about his fate eased—just a bit.
'Looks like I'll get to see him graduate after all.'
The corners of my mouth twitched upward, and soon, I was smiling like a giddy child who had just found his lost toy.
I met the man's gaze. "So, you're gonna send me now, right? My cursed, soulsborne isekai journey begins?"
He laughed again. It had a peculiar warmth, like someone who truly found this entire exchange entertaining. "Yeah. Nyx really has a thing for those dark, punishing games."
'So, she's one of those sadistic women, huh? Figures.'
I rolled my shoulders—or whatever passed for them in this bodiless state—and gave a dramatic shrug. "Alright then. I'm ready. Drop me in."
He gave a slow nod, the atmosphere around us beginning to subtly shift, like wind moving through a dream. But then he raised a hand, halting the process.
"Wait. Before that, one last thing. This part's important."
My brows would've raised if I had them. "What now?"
He looked straight at me, eyes serious for the first time in this entire absurd conversation. "Beware of the Correctors."
I tilted my head. "The what now?"
He clasped his hands behind his back, pacing slightly. "Your very existence in that world is an anomaly. A glitch in the grand code, if you want to put it in game terms. You're not supposed to be there—not the way you will be. That world has a fate. A fixed track. You… are not part of it. You're the jagged nail sticking out."
I cut in. "So… what? They're the antivirus? Trying to delete the bug?"
He nodded. "Exactly. Correctors are the world's answer to anomalies. Beings shaped by the will of the world itself, born solely to maintain its tragic script. They don't always act right away. But the more you veer off course, the stronger their attention gets. You cause too big a ripple? They'll come for you."
I rubbed my chin. "Only if I become a massive nuisance then…"
That's when the realization hit me. Clicked into place like a missing puzzle piece.
He didn't just throw people into tragic worlds because he was bored or quirky. He was obsessed.
Addicted. He needed someone to break the cycle, to pull off the perfect subversion.
But none of them ever had.
None of them could.
They all got crushed under the weight of destiny, or barely managed to shift the tone from despair to bittersweet.
'He's not satisfied yet.'
That's what this was all about. He wanted a clean break. A true happy ending in a world designed to deny it.
My lips curled into a smirk.
So that was his game?
Fine. I'd play.
But not the way he wanted.
I didn't need to rewrite the whole story. I just needed to poke a few holes here and there. Slip through the cracks.
Intervene just enough. Just enough to survive. Just enough to get strong. Just enough to go home.
That's all I wanted.
I wasn't here to be a hero. I was here to be a glitch.
And I wasn't going to give him the ending he dreamed of.
He fucking killed me.
He coughed into his fist, breaking the moment. "Alright. Now that we've covered everything, it's time. No more delays. Off you go."
I nodded, sharp and resolute.
With a flick of his wrist, reality twisted like ink in water.
And then—
I was gone.
Tossed headfirst into the sea of consciousness, into the twisted world.
But my thoughts remained clear.
Just survive. Get strong. Change what you need to. Go back. Save Kenji.
Everything else?
Irrelevant.