"Eh? Where am I?"
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As usual, I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock, which was set for 6 am, and quickly prepared to go to work.
On my way, I stopped by the convenience store and bought breakfast: onigiri and oolong tea, which I ate and drank as I walked.
I forgot to introduce myself: my name is Shingo Ichinomiya, 25 years old. I graduated from a decent university. After graduating, I entered a trading company like everyone else.
I have been at the company for three years, and I have subordinates who are younger than me. I am constantly pulled into disputes between them and my boss.
But, because most people go through things like that, I never really felt like quitting.
Of course, for ordinary members of society, it isn't unusual to think about quitting at least once. However, most people aren't brave enough to actually quit, or they lack the financial resources.
I live alone with no wife or girlfriend in an apartment that's about a ten minute walk to work. Most of my meals are eaten out.
I usually work deep into the night and sleep until the last minute in the morning. I get barely enough sleep. Because I am always working, I have to spend my holidays doing household chores, such as cleaning and laundry. However, that, too, is something most people go through.
There are many people like me in Japan, who survive on preserved food.
Really, I am not that dissatisfied with that life. As long as I keep working at the company, I may one day find a girlfriend, get married and have children.
You could say it was a pretty ordinary life.
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Or so I thought…
I woke up, as always, not remembering what I had dreamed about.
Strangely, the sound of my alarm clock, that was always so noisy, was nowhere to be heard. I didn't know what time it was, but it was dark outside.
The room was pitch-black, but since my eyes were gradually getting used to the darkness, I decided to try to investigate my surroundings.
I noticed many unfamiliar things, one after another.
I was supposed to be in my apartment, yet I don't see any of the familiar wallpapers or furniture recognizable as my own.
Three beds had been placed closeby. Each was similar to the one I found myself in, and each was occupied by the sleeping silhouette of an unknown person.
So this is a quadruple room.
"When did I become a freeloader?"
Unable to shake off the confusion caused by the sudden change to my environment, I slowly realized that things were quite different now than they were before I went to bed.
My bed, which should have been a high quality product by Nitori, had been replaced by a bed that was quite old-fashioned and not all that comfortable.
Also, the blanket now covering my body was threadbare and gave off an unpleasant aroma.
"I just bought my blanket a week ago, it was brand-new." Such a stingy thought flashed through my mind.
I did my best to pull myself together, but was nonetheless shocked when I realized that my body had also changed.
"Eh? Did I become smaller?"
Admittedly, I am not that tall, but I am at least of average height for a Japanese man.
However, right now, no matter how I looked at it, my body had shrunk down to that of a child.
"Eh? What is this?"
I had been reading web novels lately, so the idea of reincarnation into another world immediately came to mind.
However, I noticed that I was not an infant, which led me to believe that I had not just been born, but rather that my consciousness had possessed the body of a human being from this unfamiliar world.
Despite my urge to jump out of bed, I restrained myself. It was dark, and the other people sleeping near me might have thought I had gone crazy if I had made any noise at such a late hour.
Plus, I didn't even know the relationship between the owner of this small body and the three people sleeping in the other beds.
However, it is most likely that this is a big family, and the previous owner of this body was a member of it.
"I have to behave until I can confirm my situation. So, I guess another nap will have to suffice for now…"
As I thought about all of this I was overcome by exhaustion, and drifted off to sleep.