Chapter 1

In a small compartment, an adult lay on his bed. His name was Lio, a 28-year-old graduate who was unemployed. Lio had cut himself off from society; he rarely went out, and when he did, it was only to buy his rations and other necessities. He lived in a small compartment by himself at the corner of the city.

His dad had passed away when he was still in middle school, and his mother had passed away last year. He also didn't get along with his other relatives, so he chose to live on his own. Though he had tried at many places, he couldn't get a job. All he got was a labor construction job, which he did two days a week, just to buy his rations. As a high school scholar, he was sincere and diligent, but in this era, hard work alone was not enough to be successful; you needed a high background and capital. So, even though he had a strong will and never gave up, he couldn't achieve anything at this point in life yet.

Even a tough rock breaks if it's constantly hammered, so does a tough person. Lio was tired of acting tough, tired of clinging to hope each day, tired of saying to himself that things would get better. On this very day, he sat on his bed, holding a revolver in his hand.

"I hope this gun would kill me in one shot," he thought. "Maybe I should shoot myself in the head to make it quick. In the movies, they do it like this, right? Ah, well, even if I suffer a bit more before dying, it's nothing compared to all the pain I've been through all these years."

He loaded the revolver and pointed it at his head. "Well, isn't it my birthday today? Hehe, how ironic it is to die on my birthday. Well, not like there's anyone to remember my birthday. Ah, let's do this."

Lio's hands were shaking; he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.

Whiss....

The bullet passed through his head, but instead of pain, he found himself in a place of darkness.

"Where am I?" he wondered. "I should've been dead. Is it hell? But hell shouldn't be this quiet, right."

While he was still contemplating his surroundings, he saw a brilliant light on the horizon. The light spoke up:

"Lio Verhan, if you were given a chance to start a life again from the beginning, would you take it?"