The beginning of a new reality

“Welcome to the astral plane,” an enchanting voice spoke out of the blue, and at that moment, my eyes opened.

I found myself in a room of nothing but plain white. No matter how far I looked, it didn’t seem to have an end. Almost infinite.

As I looked around, confused by what had happened, my eyes fell on a lady—her beauty peerless. Her hair shimmered white, so long it reached the ground. Her eyes glowed golden. Her dress? A white, laced, see-through gown, beneath which her reddish undergarments stood out. Her figure was divine, and I couldn’t look away from what I was seeing.

“U-um…” My words froze. I didn’t have the time to casually converse with someone like this. I had no idea what was going on to begin with.

I tried retracing my memories, but everything was blurry. I couldn’t remember or relive anything about myself.

“Welcome to the astral plane,” she repeated out of nowhere.

“A-astral plane? What’s that?” I asked, my state still as distressed as ever.

“It is a dimension where people who die in the real world end up.”

“Real world? Die? What’s that supposed to mea—”

But the mysterious lady interrupted my rambling, her tone laced with immense seriousness.

“You died.”

Her expression wasn’t soft-spoken anymore; it was something more vile, yet her charm never left.

“D-died? Me? How? When? I don’t even remember anything!” I scratched the top of my head. Despite this revelation, I was rather calm—and I couldn’t even understand why.

“Based on your history: name, Kurose Renji. Age, just turned nineteen. Cause of death? Poison.”

“P-poison?” At that moment, flashbacks began flickering in my head. My past was becoming clearer, though not something I could understand at first glance.

“It doesn’t matter how you died. I took an interest in you,” she smiled and walked up to me.

“Interest?” I repeated.

She simply nodded and placed her warm right hand on my cheek. Once again, I was mesmerized by her beauty, as if under a charm.

“Kurose, do you know the most admirable trait of any human?” she asked suddenly, snapping me back to reality.

“H-huh… I’m not sure. What do you think?”

“It’s a man’s heart. And you had just that. Kurose, I have been watching you for the longest time. You had a heart of gold until your death—always helping people in need. Basically, you were the kindest man alive, but no one paid much attention to you.”

I blushed at her sudden compliment, pulling away from her touch.

“Hehe, I wouldn’t say—” That was when it all hit me.

Out of nowhere, my memories began flooding back, almost as if she had caused it. I remembered now.

My name was Kurose Renji. I had just turned nineteen, just as she said. But the way she complimented me—calling me kind-hearted—felt like too much of a stretch.

“At a very young age, your past was brutal. You had an abusive father who never cared for your well-being and often sexually assaulted your mother, am I right?”

“W-why are you bringing this up—”

“But unlike your father, your mother was the total opposite—a wonderful person at heart. Despite what she went through, she made sure to always be there for you. Your family barely managed to survive, struggling to take care of even the simplest things.”

Sweat trickled down my face. I was shocked. How did she know all this? It was frustrating to hear her casually talk about my past like it was some novel story. Was she mocking me? Did she find it amusing?

“But all things must come to an end, right? Your father went too far and put your mother in the hospital. She passed away, but there was something she told you that you never forgot.”

Her words sparked a memory. On her deathbed…

I was ten at the time. I cried and held her hand. Yet despite her situation, she reassured me with a smile and said these exact words:

“Humans were not meant to be perfect. Humans will forever have two sides: good and evil. It isn’t possible to balance both—one has to overcome the other. I want you to create a change. End this cycle of hatred forever.”

Those were her last words, and she died with a warm smile on her face.

A year later, my father committed suicide. At the age of eleven, I was left completely alone. I couldn’t handle or sustain the debt my parents had left behind, so I worked multiple jobs, often going days without sleep.

It was hell.

Sometimes I wondered: why was I met with such tragedy? And what pissed me off the most? There were others going through similar struggles, yet somehow, they still lived better lives than mine.

It was frustrating—living in such harsh conditions. I wanted to get rid of myself…

“And you chose the right path.”

“Huh?” Confused, I turned my eyes toward the lady. Her smile was warm.

“You chose the genuine path. Despite how tough things were, you were nice, kind, and welcoming. You suffered, yet you still greeted people with a smile. You helped your peers who lived better than you. For example, the time you fed a group of homeless kids, even though you had nothing to eat. Or how you boosted a small restaurant into stardom. It was beautiful—seeing you pour your heart into everything.”

She went on and on about my heroic deeds. Her once mature charm melted into childlike playfulness, her smile bright and innocent.

All I could do was watch, my blush creeping in.

She was right—I had helped many people, though my life had been miserable all the same.

“Because of that, I fell for you!” She suddenly jumped at me, her face inches from mine.

“F-fell for me? No—you say all this, but how did I die exactly? The only thing I remember is being invited by Hiyori to a party… Did Hiyori kill me?”

“Most likely the case.” She tilted her head cutely, playing dumb.

“B-but why—”

“It’s because people don’t like seeing you happy. Haven’t you noticed? At the start of this year, a lot of good things happened to you, right? First, your college provided you with a scholarship. Soon after, you won an unexpected prize of over a million. It was a huge sum, and life was finally going smoothly. If the once lonely, empathetic loser—who would do anything to help others—suddenly started getting what he wanted, people would most likely get jealous.”

“W-what…”

“Your life is miserable, Kurose. That’s exactly why I love you.”

“W-what?”

“Welcome to the astral plane.” Her mature tone returned, burying all traces of her earlier playfulness.

“You have been given the chance to live a second life.”

“Huh?”