Ariel woke up with a gasp and sat straight upon finding herself in unfamiliar surroundings.
A light knock came from outside, followed by a voice.
"Ms. Grey, the meeting adjourns in three hours. Mr. David specifically instructed me to convey to you that you'll be presenting it in the conference room."
Silence lingered in the big, luxurious room as Ariel continued to gasp. Her hands automatically reached for her face, finding herself without glasses, and she was surprised.
"W-What, I can see?" She blinked as if unable to get the reality. Ever since she was little, she needed thick glasses to see. Otherwise, everything would be a blur.
"Ms. Grey?" The tone of the stranger became somewhat anxious when no reply came. "Are you awake?"
"Yes, yes! I'm awake. I'll be there!" She replied out of instinct.
It was no different to her mom coming to wake her up in the morning to attend her lectures every day. So, that response was imprinted in her bones.
"Alright then. The president's staff will be waiting for you downstairs in the common room." The voice said, and she heard the sound of receding steps.
Silence returned to the room.
Ariel blinked as she slowly inspected her surroundings.
"Don't tell me..." Her voice cracked as she scrambled out of the bed and darted straight for the toilet.
Right in front of the mirror, she put her hands at the rims of the basin for support. Because the shock she received was so intense that she almost fainted.
"I don't believe this." She opened the tap and quickly splashed water over her face. But the image in the mirror didn't change. It became even clearer as the cold water awakened her nerves.
The face she had didn't belong to her. It looked like to be a girl somewhat older than her. The skin was fair, the hair was chocolate brown, and the lips were a natural cherry red. The face was attractive, no doubt with a touch of seductive charm that was hard to ignore.
"How did this happen?"
After the initial shock subsided, and her tachycardia calmed down, Ariel stepped back from the mirror and had a full view of her body. She was taller, and her chest area was heavy with accentuating curves along her waist. Her legs were long and nicely toned.
If she wasn't so confused by the situation, she would have whistled to such a nice figure.
'Ting'
Before she could make sense of the situation at hand, something rang in her head. She was certain it was her head. Not her ears.
'System: Cannon Fodder resentment activated
Connecting with host...
10%
50%
80%
100%... Completed.
Welcome to the system. The soul of the last habitant of this body, Ariana Grey, has specifically selected you. Her resentment ran too deep, and as she committed suicide she had no wish other than her grievance to be resolved. Gods listened to her wishes and granted her the wish. This system has been assigned to make it certain that the host follows through the step to grant the last inhabitant her dying wish.'
"Gods? Are you fucking kidding me! I'm an atheist!"
However, it appeared the so-called system was devoid of emotions as it continued.
'Task One: Perform admirably at the presentation and gain the President's recognition.
Deadline: 24 hours
Ariel felt dizzy. She grabbed onto her head and continued to step back until her back met the wall. Tears gathered at the rim of her eyes that were a beautiful brown colour, the same as her hair. "This is not happening to me."
Ariel had read a fair deal of novels so he had a general idea of what was happening. But reality took some time to sink in.
'Warning: Failure to perform assigned task would result in Penalty.'
"Penalty?"
'Penalty is a punishment for failure to complete the assigned task in due time'
"And what is the penalty for this task?"
'Elimination of the soul from the Host body.'
"Can I go back to my world?"
A bubble of hope surfaced in her heart but voice was certain to pop it mercilessly.
'Elimination means death'
Ariel. "..."