Lin Qiuyue opened her eyes to the gentle taps of rain, it was faint but in the quiet of night, it was the only sound she could hear. She was lying on a plush cushion in a dark room and when she shifted slightly she could see that the only light was from the soft glow of the moon outside.
Her senses slowly came back to her one by one, the second of which was smell as she was soothed by the clean sweet scent in the air but when she tried to move her hand, she couldn't lift it up. Her body felt numb and heavy, what was going on? Where did this system drop her?
Everything was dark all around but this was really a body, she was in a body again. A physical body with sensations, weight, and matter...
It hadn't been long since she regained her consciousness, time was hard to estimate for her in that void but after she had made a deal with the main system, she was sent here along with her own system.
She was in another world now, in a body that wasn't her own, it all felt so strange and it happened so quickly, one moment she was consciousless and nonexistent, a soul that had escaped from its own world, and in the next moment, she was woken up by a cheery system that pestered her relentlessly to become its host. At first, it was hard to understand what it was talking about, 'hosts, planes, systems, tasks' all the flashy keywords meant nothing to her but the longer it talked, the easier it was for her to piece things together.
'This seems to be a company recruitment?' she thought, and she was correct. Once she agreed, she was brought to the main system and had to negotiate a deal and sign a contract, quite similar to the talent contracts one would find in her world.
Apparently, the process was almost the exact same too, a little system goes out to recruit a soul that it likes then brings them back to the main system who writes up a contract for that soul. Once the contract is signed, the soul becomes an official employee under the main system while the system that recruited it becomes a personal manager for that soul. Afterward, they are both sent out on the field to complete tasks equivalent to the contract they had signed. The little system as a manager shares a percentage of the profit that its host makes.
The process was pretty efficient but who knew the endless void would be so structured, out here there were still big and small businesses and even a proper tycoon.
It was unfortunate that they couldn't manage everything, especially the condition that Hosts faced when entering a new world. She wasn't sure what the original owner of this body did but she had never felt so weak and uncomfortable before, even when she died, the pain exceeded all other sensations. This was different, she wasn't in pain but she wasn't in good condition either. It felt like a hangover from what she could remember, she never enjoyed alcohol so always avoided it.
Lin Qiuyue sighed, was there no common decency between tenants? Take proper rest to avoid sickness, don't drink alcohol, and leave a light on for the new soul to navigate their surroundings easier. This should all be basic but she guessed that there was no way to tell the original soul this, soul-swapping seemed to be a swift business.
Out goes the original soul, in goes a task-taker!
What a way to start her afterlife!
Lin Qiuyue found it all a little adorable, in her world, many were concerned about the afterlife. They tortured themselves over small mistakes and agonized about their fate after death, even in the modern age when religion was no longer as dominant, there were still people who restricted their lives for something they weren't sure of. In the end, their world was only one of countless and outside those worlds, there was only the endless void (and the monopoly the main system had over it).
Luckily for her, she never cared for superstitions, she had lived life the way she wanted to, and maybe that in itself was a mistake but she never regretted her choices. If it was something she had decided to do, then she would do it. She had always been a straightforward person, carefree and vivacious. She does what she says and holds strong in her convictions.
Unfortunately, the path that she had chosen back then only worked to mark up the clear stone that was her soul until it was unrecognizable, murky, and dark, she had turned from a carefree person to someone taciturn and carefully managed. She hadn't noticed it herself until after her death.
But now, the weight of her goals in life was no more, her ties were broken and her fate ended, she had died after all. There should be no lingering attachment to such a dreary identity, she should polish her stone once more, treat herself well and live true to herself with every moment!
Well...there was still her new job as a Host but who said employees couldn't play a little during company time. It was always recommended to take long breaks, go to the restroom frequently, and sneak in games on the company computer, these were all signs of a true veteran worker.
She hadn't worked any office job for long but she still knew a thing or two.
『Host! You're awake already?』
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞
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This is officially the first rewritten chapter of Enthrallment! I finished 6 chapters in these few days so I will publish them all at once.
Thank you for all your patience! I hope everyone enjoys this new arc!