NOVEL NEXT ch1 - Transmigration to Another World
1: Transmigration to Another World
I was sinking into the sofa, overwhelmed with despair. This sofa was my small consolation, bought with the meager bonus I received—hardly enough to celebrate. Its promise to make one lazy was no exaggeration; once you sank into it, you lost all motivation to do anything.
Food? Who cares. Bathroom? Whatever. I felt utterly lethargic, as if I were floating aimlessly in space. My brain felt light. To be honest, I knew this was bad.
“I… got fired… from my job…”
Saying it out loud made my heart ache painfully. Ouch, ouch, ouch! Even with my brain feeling numb, my heart still reacted fiercely. Please, stop.
My body wouldn’t pamper me, but it was excellent at hurting me. Or maybe it’s the other way around. I’ve been overworking myself, neglecting my heart and my well-being. Is this payback? My own fault? I’m sorry. Things were starting to get really confusing.
Honestly, at 22 years old, I knew my life could still go in countless directions. There are many ways to live, and I’ve just been derailed from one path.
But I was so incredibly tired. I tried so hard, only to find no reward. I had boasted about moving to Tokyo on my own, and now I was in this state, feeling terribly guilty for letting down my supportive family back home.
Tears welled up in my eyes. They hadn’t dried up yet. How much can a person cry, anyway?
“I… don’t really want to go back…”
It was too embarrassing. I’m too proud. After going to a junior college, this is what I’ve amounted to. I felt incredibly guilty. I wanted to apologize for not being able to do everything right, for feeling like I was completely useless. I felt like I might drown in those feelings.
“Spin, spin…”
Now I’m even verbalizing sound effects. This is bad. I must seem so pathetic. Not that anyone’s here to see.
I continued to indulge in the comforting embrace of the sofa, my heart and body still floating in a daze. Please, let me be completely useless, I begged silently.
With no plans for tomorrow, there was no need to worry about setting an alarm. I could just stay like this…
But I couldn’t.
Suddenly, my vision was flooded with a blinding light.
“What the…!?”
Angry at having my last bit of drowsiness disturbed, I instinctively moved my hands to shield my eyes.
Sand, gravel, ground. Huh? What is this…? Where’s my sofa!?
It’s bright because I’m outside? Wait, is it daytime? How…? What happened to the evening when I was fired and the night when my mental state shattered? Where did those go?
Was it all just a dream?
I won’t stand for such nonsense… Even if I hadn’t been fired, there’s no way I’d go back to that company. …Just because I was bummed about getting fired doesn’t mean I want to go back to that hellish black company!! That’s it, I’m done! I made the wrong life choices and I’m exhausted!!!
Please excuse my emotional instability. I can’t handle this anymore. I’m not even making sense to myself.
Up until now, I was just staring blankly downward, and now I’ve started to cry.
＜YOU…＞
A voice came from above. It was a deep growl, almost like an animal’s, with a strange echo. In front of me appeared a coat of pure white fur.
“Huh?”
I couldn’t help but touch it. Soft, fluffy, so incredibly comforting… Yes, I’ll sleep here!!!!!
This bizarre situation was too much for my frayed nerves. The softness of the fur seemed to be the only thing grounding me, even if just barely. As I let myself sink into the fluff, my mind tried to piece together what was happening.
＜Hey＞
“Shut up, shut up. Just be my bed. Goodnight.”
Wrapped in the supreme softness, I couldn’t help but want to sleep. Escaping reality? Call it whatever you want. I’m beyond pissed off at everything. Yay, off to the land of sleep! Now that I think about it, this white fur bed has a head, and it looked like a giant wolf frowning at me, but since it went quiet, who cares.
I continued to sleep. I didn’t want to think about anything anymore.
–– When I woke up, everything in my vision was pure white. I could tell the fur in front of me was white. I vaguely remembered that.
But my hands, my long hair, even my suit, everything was white?
“What the hell is thisーーー!?”
＜You’re awake. What a noisy girl.＞
The wolf’s snout nudged me. Wait, hold on. The face, it’s huge. Like, it could eat me. Wait!?
“I don’t want to die…!”
That’s what came out of my mouth, and I was stunned by it.
…I still want to live, huh?
My body, which had been listless and floating, suddenly jerked with a tremor. I could feel my heart pounding loudly.
At such a moment, why does my mind feel so refreshed and clear…? Maybe because I slept a lot? My timing is seriously terrible, isn’t it?
As I stood there with a distant look, the wolf’s snout nudged me again.
“Uhh…”
A voiceless scream escaped me! Of course it did! Is this wolf toying with me? I envy its confidence as a strong being.
The wolf howled, a distant cry. I instinctively covered my ears, but it was so close that my eardrums felt like they were vibrating!
…Birds started gathering? Animals too. They were carrying various fruits in their mouths. And placing them in front of me.
“Ah, yes.”
As I stood there frozen, the wolf commanded me, and I instinctively obeyed.
I bit into the apple. Feeling the wolf’s imposing presence, I desperately shoved food into my stomach, nearly choking. It had been so long since I’d felt the sensation of food hitting my stomach, and it ached with a sudden pang. My body began to warm up.
As I absorbed the energy from the food, I started crying again. Tears just fell on their own.
My emotions were on a roller coaster. From the unbearable evening when I wanted to disappear, to the lethargic night when I just wanted the comfort of the sofa, to this midday when I suddenly wanted to live…
The animals quietly watched me. Then, they started to snuggle up to me. The wolf remained still, steadfast, serving as my makeshift sofa.
The wolf exhaled through its nose, seemingly satisfied.
“Th-thank you…”
The words that finally came out of my mouth were words of gratitude. I felt like the wolf smiled.