It was dark.
An overarching darkness had consumed her entire body.
But wait, what body?
She had just died, so did she even have a body anymore?
Anyways, it was dark and she couldn't see. She tried to move any of her limps, but they didn't respond. Her other five senses didn't seem to be working either.
That confirmed it, she did not have a body anymore.
Was this what happened when people died?
If not, time to panic.
No, no, no, there was no time to panic. Could she even panic though?
Her name was Kobayashi Yuzuriha, an almost successful business woman who had died at the hands of her beloved husband.
Ok, she still knew who she was.
⟨⟨ Confirmed, seeking a vessel who has met their end…Success! ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ 3 208 330 likely choices have been identified ⟩⟩
Before any of that, Yuzuriha was born to a single parent. She never knew her father, her real father! Not those stepfathers her mother kept introducing.
She didn't know a thing about him, and all her mother could say was that he's a bastard, a good for nothing deadbeat.
Each time Yuzuriha had asked about him, she always dismissed her, eventually she lost interest.
Her mother, Sawatari Akemi, wasn't exactly the greatest mom in the world, or even a decent one. She was what society referred to as an 'alcoholic whore'.
⟨⟨ Success! The name 'Sawatari' shall be used as a moniker for the Manifestation ⟩⟩
Yuzuriha had been a child, so she didn't understand what most of the words they used to call her meant, but she knew they were curses.
Honestly, they were justified.
⟨⟨ 197 8671 likely choices have been identified ⟩⟩
For as long as she could remember, there was never truly a place she could call home. With each step father she met, her environment kept changing.
She couldn't have friends or a normal childhood.
Sawatari Akemi was an alcoholic. There was nothing she loved more than alcohol, even her only daughter came second.
That must have been the reason why all of her relationships never worked out.
In her last relationship, she had stolen her boyfriend's money and blew it all on alcohol. When he found out, they were cast out into the cold night.
The season then had been winter, so the cold was harsh.
Shivering and sheathing with anger, she had enough of that life.
The men her mother kept bringing into their lives, abused, undermined and in some cases, even assaulted her.
Yuzuriha was 13 years old at the time and so, it came as a shock when she held a knife dripping with blood.
Beneath her, was the woman she once called her mother, Sawatari Akemi. The gaping hole from her chest poured out with fresh blood and the light from her eyes had faded.
She did it.
A rush of emotions coursed through her. Fear, anger, confusion and guilt, but mostly, she felt satisfaction.
The satisfaction of severing her last family tie was overwhelming. Unlike anything she had ever felt before.
Even at such a tender age, Yuzuriha understood the necessity of removing the toxic, however, it would be a lie to say taking her mother's life didn't scar her.
⟨⟨ 138 6295 likely choices have been identified ⟩⟩
From that point onwards, everything went uphill and downhill at the same time.
After she was found on the streets, mourning over her mother's death, she was taken to an orphanage. She spent a few years there before being adopted by an old couple.
They were nice people, the best thing that had happened to her.
Yuzuriha had received a fresh start, one where she could make something of herself, maybe even become a great figure in the world.
⟨⟨ Confirmed. 589 likely choices have been identified ⟩⟩
She grew up in a loving environment, made friends, went to university and fell in love.
Living with them felt like a dream she didn't deserve.
Her hands were still stained with blood after all.
Blood stains which grew darker and more permanent with every life she took.
Like everything, nothing wasn't without its faults.
Nothing in life was ever easy.
Even as an adult, the trauma from her childhood, including abuse and eventual matricide had its long-lasting effects.
Yuzuriha was emotionally unstable, her trust issues and suppressed anger have led her to have a ton of poor relationships with people.
Being undermined as a woman at her workplace didn't help either.
Without allies or influence early in her career, she had faced exploitation, underestimation, prejudice, sexual harassment, financial struggles etc, the list keeps going.
Even so, she kept pushing forward, striving to be the best and used whatever necessary methods to have her way, even killing wasn't out of the question.
For a moment, she had seen the fruits of her hard-earned labor. Only to be taken away by the one person she loved the most.
A fool.
That's what she had been.
Ah, well. No use dwelling on the past. Yuzuriha had already accepted her fate anyway.
Right now, she had to focus on her current predicament. Especially in that strange voice she kept hearing at the back of her mind.
Was someone else with her? If they could speak, didn't that mean she could also do the same?
No, that didn't seem possible. She still couldn't feel her senses, except her ability to hear apparently.
This was good. Even if she had lost her eyesight, at least she wasn't deaf.
⟨⟨ Confirmed! ⟩⟩
There it was again!
Though it sounded more like she was hearing it in her mind than her ears.
She couldn't tell her current state of being. For all she knew, she could have been just a wandering consciousness lost in the abyss.
Could that voice have been from a god?
If that was the case, then it had a pretty weird voice.
It sounded more digital, like that from a computer. Nothing about it screamed 'divine being casting judgement on the condemned!'.
And for some reason, it was counting down numbers.
Could those numbers have been the time she had been trapped here? Were the years moving a lot faster than in the regular world?
Well then, her reincarnation wasn't that far off then.
A second chance to live again, as a new person with no memories of her previous life.
That would be wonderful…
…however.
'What if my second life is filled with pain and suffering, will I end up enduring all of that again? Then, maybe death isn't so bad. I could just stay in this nothingness forever. I'm fine with that'
Asking for a second chance in life was the same as wanting to be saved. She didn't want to be saved, there was no redemption for someone like her.
'But, maybe…'
A thought flickered through her mind.
Yuzuriha wasn't asking to be saved or anything, but maybe…
'If I could be something beyond human, then maybe, I could live differently, however I want. That would be wonderful'
⟨⟨ Confirmed. 1 likely choice has been identified ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Success! A suitable vessel has been identified…preparing soul transfer ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Error! Attempt rejected. Abort ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Reason: The vessel's inherent willpower is resisting the transfer. Override initiated…Override failed ⟩⟩
⟨⟨Reason: The emotional state of the soul is unstable. Harmonizing emotional waves…Synchronization failed⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Reason: Vessel's core essence incompatible with the subject. Adjusting parameters…Adaptation unsuccessful ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Reason: The subjects' attachment to its former self exceeds acceptable thresholds. Severing attachments…Severance incomplete ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Analyzing possible solutions…Solution identified. Integrating Manifestation with subject's soul to bypass rejection ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Commencing integration…Success! The Manifestation, Sawatari, has fully integrated with subject's essence ⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Reattempting soul transfer…⟩⟩
⟨⟨ Success! Soul transfer complete. ⟩⟩