Darkness, complete darkness.

hmm... is this what it is like to be dead?

I started thinking about my last moments, I was quite pathetic huh? I couldn't stop that girl from jumping, and it ended in me dying instead, to be honest I'm a bit disappointed, I was excited to go to university and study, I also planned many things after graduation.

I sneered mentally at myself, and you didn't even accomplish anything in your life, I wanted to realise mother's wish but I couldn't, and no one will remember me like my mother wanted, even the girl I saved would forget about me eventually, I'm such a failure.

It appears that I'm drifting freely in a void of nothingness, I waited for a bit, it was quite comfortable actually, the sensation is relaxing, or is it a sensation at all? I don't feel anything, silence everwhere, dark vision, no particular smell nor taste, I wasn't cold and I also wasn't warm, I tried moving my non-existent body but I couldn't.

My brain was occupied once again by the dating simulator though, as if it was urging me to replay the game's scenes in my head, it's weird... I thought, why is that game always coming to my mind, I've pushed away the thought before because I was dying and I wanted to tell the girl something to encourage her. well, since I have nothing to worry about right now I will just recall the game, as I began recalling the game, the more I recalled the sleepier I became, sleepier wasn't the term to describe how it felt but I didn't know how to accurately express it, like my non-existent body is breaking down and drifting away from me while I felt more relaxed and lighter.

After I finished recalling the game, my consciousness started to fade away as I sank into a deep sleep, or that is what I perceived it to be.

Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!

I could hear the chirping of birds in the distance.

huh? I'm alive?

My eyes bounced open and I observed my surroundings, I was in a straw bed in some sort of hut.

Hm? This isn't a hospital, where am I?, this place is unfamiliar.

I was dazed for a moment, skimming through my memories.

I brought up my hand and touched the back of my head, it was smooth with soft hair, but I was confused.

I'm pretty sure I had a severe injury on the back of my head? What happened?

I sat up, and immediately noticed something amiss, my field of vision was lower, was it always this low? I thought as I lifted up my hand to scratch my hea-

eh? Wha- m-my hand, is small!?

I examined the rest of my body only to find out that I had completely shrunk in size! Not only that, my skin was soft and tender, It was like I had become a child, however I saw some small black bubbles on my skin.

I took a deep breath and tried to stabilise myself, panicking wasn't good, I need to think, but this situation is so absurd that thinking doesn't even work!

Ahh I get it, this is a dream right? When I wake up I would be in a hospital bed recovering from the incident, come on then, wake up...

I'm not waking up.

I pinched my cheeks and it hurt.

ouch, were dreams always this realistic?

I waited for a bit.

I waited for a bit more.

Nothing happened.

why aren't I waking up? What do I do in a dream like this?

I got out of the uncomfortable bed, stretched, and looked around the unfamiliar location I was in, and was stupefied, A corpse?! Wait, Two!?

What I saw infront of me were two disfigured corpses, with black bubbles and rashes on their skin, yellow puss was oozing out of the bubbles, it was at this moment that I realized that there was a foul smell permeating from the corpses, it was terrible, and I felt dizzy.

Cough, Cough! Blaaargh! Cough.

What the hell!? No this has to be a dream! Please be a dream! Someone wake me up I beg you!

Even though I was freaking out, I didn't feel any changes of expression on my deadpan face.

I started to feel dizzy for the second time but before I had the chance to vomit again I felt a sudden piercing pain bursting in my head, I collapsed and fell to the floor, and I curled up, I felt like my head is going to explode at any moment.

AHHH! It hurts! It hurts! I feel like I'm going to split in two!

I started remembering things, memories that weren't my own, but I wasn't able to make sense of them at all as the pain was too excruciating.

Then suddenly my whole body started aching, I felt my bones being broken and reformed slowly and so were my muscles and brain.

My whole existence was screaming at me to give up and die instead of facing this pain, but I couldn't even close my eyes I was powerless.

It wasn't until the next morning that I was able to stand up despite my head still throbbing but it was much bearable than before.

My bady had changed; I got a little taller and bigger, though it was only a little, also the black bubbles had faded away.

"Definitely not a dream." I muttered with a child like voice, it was hoarse because of how much I screamed, however you could still figure out that it's pleasant to the ears.

I quickly got out of the hut to think for a little while, what I saw was an eerily silent little village in the middle of a forest with large trees, I saw a log and sat on it, after obtaining the memories from the original owner of this body, I felt a lot more calm, and this unknown place felt a bit more familiar, my past memories on Earth felt like they happened a long time ago although they were still very vivid, apparently this world has magic, demonic beasts, and smart races other than humans, it's just like those fantasy worlds I've read about on Earth.

However the owner of this body doesn't know much information because he is still 8 years old, his name is Blake, and those two corpses from before were his parents, I looked at myself and those black bubbles were gone, I sighed with relief to that, perhabs they were gone after my whole body started reforming, anyways, this village was lived in by the Calliope tribe, I used was because they have all died except for blake, or should I say me? because of this mysterious illness, they lived isolated away from any human civilisation, it was because individuals from the Calliope tribe were often trafficked as slaves, as they have a unique and beautiful appearance and an enchanting voice.

This world has slaves? I guess I'll need tl be careful if I ever enounter people, however that isn't my concern right now, actually I'd like to meet someone, I'm in the middle of nowhere!

I got up and started walking around in the village, if I remember correctly, Blake's parent had piled up the bodies of the dead villagers and burned them so that the disease stops spreading, however it was useless, they caught the disease anyways and their child also caught it, they died trying to take care of him, which is why Blake had survived for as long as he did.

Blake was a smart child and had learned how to write and read, and from his memories I could tell that the chief's house has various books in it, and what I need most right now is information about this world, also, food, I'm hungry.

I stepped into the largest hut in the village; the chief's house, and looked around for food, I found some bread, it was moldy, but I had no choice but to eat it, I tore the moldy parts off and started eating, after finishing I looked for the books, they were very old, and unfortunately they were quite useless, they were only about tales of heros and stories that seem like fairy tales what are you doing chief? Why don't you have any useful books? I looked around two dozens of books until I found a somewhat useful one, it was the chief's grandfather's diary, but the information received was limited.

Apparently, Calliope people always have the wind and sound attributes, it's in their blood's lineage, also the current village is somewhere near the border of the Elven kingdom which name I couldn't read because the book was so old, there wasn't any useful information, most of the pages were not readable, and the other entries on the diary are about the chief's grandfather's love for another Calliope woman and the peoms he wrote to sing for her... Blaargh... just kidding hehe.

I happened to cross a mirror while I was going out of the big hut, and the reflected person on it was reminiscent of myself on Earth when I was a child, however my features were much softer and prettier, I still had black hair, but my eyes were weird, the were a mix of blue around the pupils surrounded by black, I had really pale skin and red lips I guess these beautiful features are because I'm a Calliope.

but... I'm so cute right now! Look at those plump rosey cheeks I just wanna pinch them! I pinched them.

Okay, let's leave admiring myself aside, for now, I need to leave this place, I'll look around for any useful stuff and equipment.

I went though every house in the village, for equipment I found a leather bag, a water bottle, some knifes, rope, flint and steel, I got a change of clothes, there was also a sword but I could barely carry it with my hands.

This body is still very weak and fragile, I really need to be careful.

For food, I found a lot of jerky and dried meat, which I was happy about because they last for a long time without getting spoiled, and some bread, which was getting moldy, I need to eat it soon.

speaking of which, why is there only plain bread and dried meat in this village?! I want other food QAQ!

Before setting out on my journey, I lit Blake's family's hut on fire so the disease would be eradicated and to prevent the small chance of it spreading again.

I prayed to his parents the same way the Calliopes do when someone dies, and left.

I didn't know where anything was, and the trees blocked the view of the sun, thus, I picked a random direction a started walking.

I guess this is the start of my new life.