The wind drifted gently.
Not sharp. Not biting cold—just a soft breeze brushing against the skin, carrying the scent of grass and damp soil. Sho's consciousness surfaced slowly, like someone waking from an afternoon nap that had gone on far too long.
When he opened his eyes, a pale greenish-white light greeted him.
The sky stretched endlessly above—faded blue, thin clouds gliding lazily across it. Below him lay an open field of grass, swaying in rhythm with the wind. No buildings. No bookshelves. No walls or ceilings.
Sho blinked several times.
"...Huh?"
He pushed himself halfway up and turned his head.
Cass was there.
Her short black hair was slightly messy, her eyes wide as she stared at their surroundings with an expression that was almost comical. She stood stiffly, as if moving even an inch would cause everything to collapse.
"Sho," she said softly, "we're still in the library, right?"
Sho glanced behind him, then forward again. Grass. Sky. Wind. Not a single sign of human presence—let alone a school building.
"...If this is the library," he replied hesitantly, "then our school must be undergoing a very aggressive renovation."
Cass stared at him for a few seconds before frowning.
"Or... we're dreaming?"
"Dreaming?" Sho echoed.
"Or unconscious," Cass added quickly. "Maybe a heavy book fell on our heads and now we're hallucinating together?"
Sho tilted his head, thinking it over.
"It makes absolutely no sense," he said, "which is why I'm willing to believe this is a dream."
He stood up fully, exhaled, and raised his hand.
"In that case," he said casually, "I'll wake up first."
Before Cass could stop him—
Smack.
The sound echoed clearly through the open field.
Cass jolted. "SHO?!"
Sho froze.
His hand still hung in the air, his cheek burning—not the dull ache of a dream, but a sharp, real pain that made him flinch.
"...That hurt," he muttered.
He pressed his cheek, then let out a strange chuckle—not quite amused, not quite panicked.
"Okay. This… isn't a dream."
Cass's face went pale. "Don't tell me—"
She shook her head rapidly. "Sho, we didn't drink alcohol, right?"
Sho turned toward her with an offended expression.
"Hey. We don't even touch cigarettes, let alone alcohol."
Then he added, "Did you forget how Sister Cora completely lost it when she saw a thin trail of smoke near me? And the funniest part was that she only realized it was a lighter after I was already immobilized."
"Right…" Cass muttered, then scanned their surroundings again, lowering her voice.
"But this still doesn't make sense."
They fell silent.
The wind stirred again, rippling the grass like waves. No birds. No insects. Only a silence that felt too deliberate—as if the world had just been created and hadn't yet been filled with sound.
Sho scratched the back of his head.
"If it's not a dream, and we're not drunk… then there's only one possibility left."
Cass shot him a wary glance.
"I don't like that tone."
Sho gave a small grin—the joking smile he always used to hide his nerves.
"Hear me out before you punch me."
He shrugged.
"Maybe we got… isekai'd."
Cass stared at him flatly.
"Sho."
"Like those cliché comics," Sho continued quickly, leaning into the joke.
"Two people dragged into another world. Swords, magic, dragons—"
"Sho."
"There's usually a system too—"
"Sho."
He laughed.
"Okay, okay. I'm kidding."
Sho raised his hand dramatically.
"Systeam~"
And then—
A translucent blue light appeared in the air.
Not lightning. Not an explosion.
Just a flat panel floating calmly, as if it had always been there and had only now decided to reveal itself.
Dim letters glowed across its surface.
Sho froze.
His joking smile vanished instantly.
Cass stared at the panel, then slowly turned to him, her voice barely a whisper.
"...Sho. Tell me I'm seeing things."
The wind continued to blow softly.
And for the first time since they had arrived in this grassland, the silence became truly terrifying.
Sho's legs suddenly lost all strength.
He staggered back half a step, then collapsed onto the grass as if his knees had forgotten their purpose. His breathing caught, his heart racing.
"...This isn't funny anymore," he muttered.
The blue panel remained suspended in the air—motionless, unblinking, simply there, as if their presence was not strange at all.
Cass hurried over. "Sho! What's wrong?!"
Sho lifted his face, staring at the panel again.
"I don't know… it just feels like—" He pressed a hand to his chest. "—my head needs time to accept this."
Cass swallowed hard. She hesitated, then inhaled deeply and stared into the empty space in front of her.
If Sho could summon it…
Then this wasn't a one-sided hallucination.
She focused on one word.
System.
And instantly—
A blue glow appeared.
Another panel formed in front of Cass, smaller, angled to match her line of sight. The letters surfaced slowly, more personal.
[Cassandra Miolovel]
Mental: 78%
Cass froze.
She stared at the panel for far too long, as if hoping the number would change—or disappear.
"...Sho," she said quietly. "Can you… see this?"
Sho squinted slightly, then let out a short breath.
"Yeah. I see it clearly."
"Seriously?"
"Seriously." Sho pointed at the air in front of her.
"Your full name. And… Mental seventy-eight percent."
"So it's real," Cass said, clenching her fist.
Sho nodded slowly, then studied the number with a thoughtful expression.
"By the way… what do you think this 'Mental' thing means?"
Cass shook her head.
"I don't know. It doesn't feel like energy. And it's not physical strength."
She glanced at him.
"Try opening yours too."
Sho clicked his tongue.
"Alright. I'll try the same way you did…"
He closed his eyes briefly, focusing on the system.
A blue panel appeared.
[Sho Noerant]
Mental: 83%
Cass compared the two.
"Yours is higher," she said flatly.
Sho snorted.
"See? Even in another world, I still win—barely."
Cass shot him a glare.
"Be serious."
Sho fell silent.
Cass exhaled.
"This percentage… the most logical explanation is mental stability."
Sho blinked.
"Sanity?"
"Yes," she replied quietly. "Not the body. Not magic. The mind."
Sho stared at his number again. Eighty-three percent.
"...So you're saying," he said slowly, "this can go down?"
Cass didn't answer immediately.
"That's the worst-case scenario," she said at last. "But it might go up too."
Sho clicked his tongue and looked at the sky.
"Great. Another world, cool system, but no stats except mental. I was hoping for HP, Mana, Stamina—"
"Sho."
"—not even a tutorial?"
As if answering his complaint—
A larger panel appeared between them.
Not belonging to either of them.
Neutral. Calm.
[Welcome, New Authors]
The text paused.
Then another line appeared—bolder, clearer.
[First World: The Repeating Tragedy]
The wind stirred again.
Sho and Cass stood side by side, staring at the panel in silence.
And somehow, for the first time since the system appeared—
Nothing felt like a joke anymore.
---
The wind blew softly once more.
That was when Cass noticed something… wrong.
She looked down.
Her school uniform—white blouse, gray skirt, black shoes—was gone.
Instead, she wore a simple pale-brown dress. The fabric was rough, slightly worn at the hem. No school logo. No neat stitching. It looked like something a village girl would wear.
"Sho…" she called quietly.
Sho had noticed too.
He raised his hands, staring at his clothes—dull fabric shirt, thin vest, dark pants patched in several places. Even his shoes were no longer school shoes, but worn leather footwear.
"...This doesn't make sense," Sho muttered.
Cass looked at him.
"If this is isekai, like you said…"
"Our uniforms should still be here," Sho said immediately.
"Cliché isekai always works that way. You get transferred wholesale."
Cass nodded.
"But this… feels like we've lived here for a long time."
A chill ran down her spine.
Cass turned to the empty air.
"System?"
No response.
She closed her eyes and tried again—more focused, more serious.
"System. Please explain."
Silence.
Sho tried as well.
"Hey, system. A short explanation would be nice."
Nothing.
"...Amazing," Sho muttered bitterly.
Cass clenched her teeth.
"So we're in a foreign world, wearing foreign bodies, foreign clothes, and the system is mute."
"Accurate summary."
They fell silent.
For the first time since arriving in this world, they truly had no idea what to do.
"Sho…" Cass said quietly.
"If we're really… not from this world—"
"—then this world probably thinks we are someone," Sho finished.
Before the thought could settle—
"Sho! Cassandra!"
A girl's voice called out.
Cass jolted and turned.
A girl their age stood nearby. Her reddish-brown hair was loosely tied, her face openly annoyed. She wore similar village clothes—practical, worn from labor.
She strode toward them.
"You two are unbelievable!" she snapped.
"Skipping work and running off to the grasslands—and flirting on top of that!"
Cass recoiled. "W-What?!"
Sho froze.
The girl stopped in front of them, glaring.
"Don't tell me you're pretending you forgot again."
Sho opened his mouth.
"...Sorry, who—?"
Her expression immediately turned dangerous.
"Oh, great. Fake amnesia. Again," she said sarcastically.
"Very creative."
Cass panicked.
"No, wait—we really don't—"
"Enough," the girl cut in.
"You always do this. Skip work, then pretend you don't recognize me."
She pointed at herself.
"Irene. Irene. Remember that name, because I'm tired of repeating it every time you 'forget.'"
Sho swallowed.
The name meant nothing—yet his chest tightened strangely when he heard it.
Irene clicked her tongue.
"Honestly, one day I swear I'm going to hit you both until you really get amnesia."
The moment she said that—
Pain struck.
Sho's head felt like it was being stabbed from the inside. He staggered and dropped to his knees, clutching his temple. The world spun as unfamiliar images flooded his mind.
—A small village named Rivera
—Wheat fields
—A simple wooden house
—A man and a woman smiling at him
"Sho, help Irene for a bit."
"You're part of this family."
Sho gasped. "What… is this…?"
Beside him, Cass clutched her head, breathing heavily.
More images surged—
—The village hall
—A stern but weary man
—"You must be strong, Cassandra. This village depends on you."
And the image of a woman lying still, pale—Cass's small hand gripping hers.
"No…" Cass whispered.
Irene panicked.
"Hey! What's wrong with you two?!"
She knelt between them.
"Sho! Cassandra! Don't joke like this—!"
The pain slowly faded.
Sho lifted his head, breathing heavily. His eyes widened—not in pain, but recognition.
"Rivera," he murmured.
Cass swallowed.
"My father… the village chief?"
Irene fell silent.
"You two…"
Before they could respond—
Blue panels appeared in front of them both.
Same text. Same tone. Same timing.
[DATA STABLE]
[Vessel Synchronization Complete]
The glow dimmed, then vanished.
And what remained wasn't just confusion—
—but a far more terrifying truth.
They hadn't simply arrived in this world.
They had taken someone's place.
Irene stared at them blankly, then scoffed.
"Oh, great. Now you're pretending to be sick."
Cass looked up reflexively.
"It's not an act—"
"Enough, Cassandra," Irene cut in.
"I've seen this performance too many times."
Sho tried to speak, but Irene had already stood up and crossed her arms.
"The work isn't even hard. The fields just need tidying before evening. Yet you always find excuses."
She pointed at Cass.
"You. Go home. Help in the fields before the Village Chief comes looking."
Then she turned to Sho.
"And you. My parents are worried because you disappeared this morning."
Sho fell silent.
Something tugged at his chest when he heard that—not logical, but… right.
Irene noticed his silence.
"Don't space out. If you're really sick… say so."
Cass glanced at Sho. They understood each other without words.
"...Alright," Cass said quietly.
Sho nodded.
"We'll come."
Irene exhaled, unconvinced, then turned away.
"Finally. Let's go before I change my mind."
---
The village of Rivera came into view.
And the first thing they noticed—
A barrier.
A thin, nearly transparent layer formed a massive dome around the entire village, pulsing softly with light. Gentle. Subtle. Yet unmistakably there.
Sho and Cass stopped.
Irene, meanwhile, walked straight through it without hesitation.
"...She didn't even react," Sho muttered.
Cass swallowed.
"Which means this really is normal here."
They stepped inside.
The air within the barrier felt… stable. Warm. Safe.
Their vessel memories stirred.
Sho knew—without being told—that the barrier originated from a monument at the center of the village. Two ancient heroic artifacts.
The sword Balmung, said to have slain a dragon.
And the bow Vijaya, rumored to have descended from the heavens.
"This is strange," Sho whispered behind Irene.
"A normal village… guarded by two hero artifacts."
Cass nodded.
"Logically, Rivera should be the capital."
She lowered her voice.
"But from the vessel's memories… the capital lies far to the south."
Sho smirked.
"Try making sense of that logically."
Before Cass could answer—
"Hey! You two!" Irene raised her voice.
"How rude, talking without including me."
But her words stopped.
Her nose twitched. Her eyes widened.
"...Fresh bread."
She snapped her head toward a bakery at the end of the street, the warm scent filling the air.
"I'll be right back," she said quickly.
"Don't go anywhere!"
And before Sho or Cass could react, Irene had already dashed off.
They stood still.
Then Sho turned to Cass.
Cass turned back.
Without a word, they slipped away—into a narrow, quieter alley, away from the villagers' eyes.
"Alright," Sho said softly.
"Now we can think."
"At least for a bit," Cass replied.
That was when—
A translucent blue panel appeared again before them.
[PAGE ACTIVE]
Objective: Rewrite a New Ending.
Cass read it twice.
"New… ending?"
Sho let out a long breath.
"We don't even know what the original plot or ending was."
He raised a hand.
"We're just two students thrown into an isekai without a tutorial."
Cass snorted softly.
Sho continued jokingly,
"Usually in cliché stories, the system pampers you. I should've woken up handsome and overpowered overnight."
Cass chuckled.
"Glowing hair. Dark aura. Stats skyrocketing."
"Exactly. Like certain Korean comics," Sho added with a crooked grin.
"Or at least we'd get a weapon," Cass said.
"Maybe a dagger, so we'd look cool."
Sho laughed quietly.
"What's a dagger against a sword? Or a spear?"
The simple banter—without them realizing it—lightened their chests.
The panel changed.
[Sho Noerant]
Mental: 83% → 85%
[Cassandra Miolovel]
Mental: 78% → 81%
Cass blinked.
"Our mental… increased?"
Sho studied the numbers, then smiled faintly.
"Maybe… the system likes it when we don't take things too seriously."
Or perhaps—
Sometimes, simple things… are enough.
Behind the protective walls of Rivera, two strangers wearing borrowed bodies stood side by side.
No map.
No guidance.
No idea what kind of ending awaited them.
But for the first time since their world collapsed—
They weren't alone.
And the first page…
had finally begun.
[To be continued...]