Prologue

[Beep! Student number 0341, it is almost six in the morning. Please wake up soon.]

Following the robotic announcement, a young man opened his eyes as he roused from his sleep. What greets him is a white ceiling; clean and simple. The young man blinked the sleepiness away, but did not make an effort to move his body.

[Student number 0341. It is now six in the morning.Please get ready in thirty minutes for the morning exercise.]

The young man groaned and sat up on his bed. He fixed his gaze on one corner of the room. He could see a floating device that appeared to be controlled remotely. This was the source of the robotic announcement.

The device took the form of a small ball with a single tinted glass resting on its centre. Upon further scrutinising, the young man could see the lens of a camera moving slightly as it adjusted itself. The red blinking indicator is a clear sign that shows that every movement of his is currently being recorded.

[Student number 0341. We have wasted three minutes. Please get ready for the day or there will be another point deduction for you.]

The announcement came once again and upon hearing the risk of point deduction, a grim expression flashed on his face. What happened last time was something he did not wish to experience again. Not wanting to take the risk, the young man reluctantly left the comfort of his bed.

His room is not big. It was square shaped, and only had minimal decorations, with the bed taking up most of the space. There are only two doors. One leading to the hallway, while the other leads to the bathroom. No windows were present within the square shaped room.

Although the room was clearly suspicious, the young man still walked towards the bathroom. Each of his steps was light as he slowly approached the door in a relaxed manner, as if all these were already a normal routine for him.

Once he stood in front of the door, he raised his hand and pressed his palm over the panel beside the door.

On top of the panel, there are two light indicators. Currently, only the red indicator lights up. But a few seconds after the young man pressed his palm over the panel, the red indicator turned off and the one beside it emits a blue light. When the blue indicator lights up, the bathroom door automatically slides open.

No longer hindered by the door, the young man went into the bathroom. The floating device faithfully recorded all these actions of his until he disappeared into the bathroom. When the bathroom door closed, the round ball shook for a bit before it issued several weird sounds. After a while, it stopped, only to continue again. It seems to communicate with something invisible and the language it uses is something that a human could not understand.

Back inside the bathroom, the young man was staring at his own reflection in the big mirror behind the sink. He blinked once, then twice, with the reflected image always copying his action. He then raised his hand to touch his reflection, eyes never leaving the mirror. After a while, a heavy sigh escaped his lips as he slowly shook his head before proceeding to take a morning shower.

For the young man, the face reflected on the mirror earlier is both familiar and yet unfamiliar to him. The reason for it to be not familiar is that this body he’s currently inhibiting is not his own. But at the same time, it was familiar to him because the face that was reflected is similar to his own from ten years ago in 9 out of 10 points.

To explain it simply, he is not a resident of this world but was somehow transported here, into this body, after his death.

Just three months ago, he was still back in his original world being one of the most renowned chefs. He didn’t even reach his thirties when he climbed up to the peak of the cooking world. He should’ve lived a life of retirement once he had completed his own unique signature dish. Although to create that one dish, it may take him several more decades, he was willing to devote his life to it.

It was only unfortunate that though a man could plan all he wants, a single decision could destroy it.