EPISODE 1: "The Book I Shouldn't Have Opened"

EPISODE 1: "The Book I Shouldn't Have Opened"

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“I don’t even like novels.”

That was the first thing I told Rin as he pushed a dust-covered book into my hands. We were sitting under the cracked window of the university cafeteria, sunlight filtering through like faded gold.

“You always say that,” Rin smirked. “Just try it. No romance, no fluff. It’s about two best friends in a monster-ridden world. One gets betrayed… dies… it’s tragic. You’ll love it.”

He said that like tragedy was a genre I enjoyed.

Still, later that night, in my tiny apartment with peeling wallpaper and a rattling fan, I flipped it open. Just one chapter, I told myself. One chapter before I crash.

The book was heavier than it looked. The paper was thick, the print strangely elegant. I expected it to be boring.

It wasn’t.

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The world was divided into broken territories called Shards. Cities split like puzzle pieces. Sky fractured by storms. Strange creatures roamed between the cracks—beasts, hybrids, cursed born. People fought to survive.

Two names kept coming up:

Aizen, bold and too powerful for his own good.

Naoya, calm and thoughtful, often chasing after Aizen’s chaos with quiet strength.

They were everything to each other. Even when the world turned cruel, they were unshaken. Brothers not by blood, but by something stronger.

Until…

It happened.

Naoya changed. Something twisted his path.

Aizen didn’t see it coming.

By the time he did—it was too late.

Naoya fell. Alone.

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I stared at the final page for what felt like hours. My chest felt tight. My eyes stung. I didn’t cry. Not really. I just… couldn’t stop thinking about them.

That kind of friendship—shattered.

That kind of death—unfair.

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Morning came. I was late for work. Again. The warehouse job was brutal, but it paid. I lifted, stacked, smiled when customers walked by.

I was halfway through my evening shift when the accident happened. A crate slipped. I turned to help.

Then—light.

And pain.

And silence.

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I woke up to wind brushing through tall grass. The sky was strange—too bright, too close. In the distance, mountains floated like islands in the air.

[SYSTEM BOOTING…]

A voice echoed in my mind. Calm. Genderless. Almost kind.

Welcome, user. I am Symbi, your integrated support AI. Memory status: fragmented. Physical condition: unstable. Current identity: pending.

I sat up.

There was a river nearby. I crawled to the edge and looked down.

That wasn’t my face.

That wasn’t my world.

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To be continued…

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AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I’ve read so many reincarnation stories where the MC gets to live inside a book or game. So of course… Sora goes and actually pulls it off. Unfair, right?

Me: “Why him?”

Symbi: “Probability calculated. Sora is 98% more confused than the average host.”

“This is just a sneak peek of my second novel! If you’d like me to continue it, let me know in the comments or give it a like. Your response will decide if I continue posting this series!”

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