Chapter Text
"Everything has ended and nothing is left behind. Now only one remains."
But slowly, he also left all of this.
---
Pain.
My head hurts so much!
His head felt like it was being repeatedly struck by something heavy and sharp. Zhou Mingrui tried to move but struggled as if he was not used to this body.
"Am I... still dreaming?"
Zhou Mingrui quickly dismissed that thought. Maybe he was having difficulty moving now because he was sick.
His thoughts were fragmented. Every time Zhou Mingrui tried to focus, his mind scattered again.
Why did this pain suddenly come?
Am I about to die?
The pain in his head continued throbbing, forcing his consciousness to persist even while blurred.
Slowly, his eyes began to open. His vision was blurry before returning to normal.
Reddish light illuminated part of his now-dark vision. He saw a wooden table in front of him.
On it was an open notebook with yellowed pages and unfamiliar writing.
There were also several books neatly arranged on the side, an ink bottle, a pen, and a revolver.
"What is this?"
Zhou Mingrui froze in shock. This was not his room or his house. So where was he, and what was going on with this situation?
At that moment he felt something and raised his gaze.
Red light came from outside the window, enveloping everything from the night sky above.
Then his breath paused for a moment as he looked up.
In the night sky, a red moon hung silently and calmly, but Zhou Mingrui felt heavy just looking at that red.
Seeing it brought one or even many emotions that were hard to explain. As if something had once touched his mind long ago...
There was nostalgia, sadness, pain, anger, fear, and most clearly disgust. He felt disgusted seeing that red moon. He did not know why. He could not remember where these feelings came from, and there was no way to recall them again in this state.
It was as if the feeling was at the edge of consciousness, but that consciousness kept slipping away every time he tried to grasp it.
This made Zhou Mingrui somewhat uneasy. He suddenly stood up, but his head throbbed violently, forcing him to fall back onto the chair.
"Argh..."
He inhaled and exhaled.
Now that the pain in his head had eased slightly, he stood up again slowly. This time he looked around.
The room was not too large, with brown doors on each side. Near the opposite wall was a low wooden bed.
Between the bed and the left door was a cabinet. Both doors were open and beneath it were five drawers.
Beside the cabinet, there was a grayish-white pipe along the wall at adult height. However, it was connected to a strange mechanical device with exposed gears and bearings in several places.
Objects resembling a charcoal stove were placed in the right corner of the room near the table, along with a soup pot, an iron pot, and other kitchen utensils.
Opposite the right door was a dressing mirror with two cracks. The lower part was made of wood and the design was simple and plain.
With a single glance, Zhou Mingrui saw himself in the mirror, or rather... saw his "current" self.
Black hair, brown eyes, a linen shirt, a thin build, ordinary facial features, and slightly deep facial lines…
This...
He fell silent and his mind went blank. However that strange feeling appeared again briefly before disappearing once more.
That feeling was more like something that "should be familiar" but had disappeared before he could understand it.
He frowned with slight frustration at that feeling. As if something was there, but every time he tried to grasp it, it always slipped away.
"...have I transmigrated?"