The sharp, jarring sensation of gravel pressing into my back forced me awake. My breath hitched as my eyelids fluttered open, greeted by a dull gray sky stretching endlessly above. My mind felt sluggish, foggy, as if I had been drowning in a dream and had only just surfaced.
The scent of rain clung to the air—wet asphalt, the faint tang of distant car exhaust. Slowly, I sat up, groaning as a dull ache spread through my muscles. The world around me blurred for a moment before settling into focus.
Buildings loomed on either side of the street, ordinary yet unfamiliar. A few cars rolled lazily past, the soft hum of their engines blending into the city's natural rhythm. Streetlights flickered faintly, as if struggling against the overcast sky.
"Where… am I?" I mumbled under my breath.
I reached out instinctively, my fingers brushing against something crinkly. A plastic bag. Confused, I glanced down. Inside, a loaf of bread, a carton of milk, and a bag of rice sat neatly, untouched.
A strange, creeping unease crawled up my spine.
"What the hell…?"
Panic bubbled beneath my ribs as fragmented memories surged through my mind—flashes of light, the deafening roar of the Vanishing, the world tearing apart beneath my feet.
Izumi's screams.
My chest tightened. My breath came faster.
I reached into my pocket, my fingers trembling as they closed around something solid. My phone. With an almost frantic motion, I pressed the power button. The screen blinked to life, its soft glow illuminating my shaking hands.
July 15, 2028.
I froze.
No.
"Seven years…?" My voice barely escaped my throat. "I'm seven years in the past?"
The words felt foreign on my tongue, like they belonged to someone else. My reflection stared back at me from a nearby shop window—only it wasn't the face I remembered.
The scars were gone. The weariness, the years of pain etched into my features… erased.
I looked younger.
My breathing hitched.
"This… this doesn't make sense."
The world around me moved as if nothing had changed—people walking, chatting, living. The city pulsed with life, completely unaware that, just moments ago, my reality had been one of destruction and loss.
A sharp voice cut through my thoughts, cold and detached.
"Your job is not done. Save humanity at all costs."
I gasped. My grip tightened around the plastic bag as I spun around. But there was no one there.
Nothing.
Just the steady flow of people going about their day.
"What was that?" My voice trembled. "Who's there?"
Silence.
The pounding of my own heartbeat was deafening.
My hands clenched into fists, nails digging into my palms.
"This isn't real," I muttered. "It can't be…"
But the weight of the bag in my hands told a different story. The scent of the city, the breeze against my skin—it was all too real.
I took a step forward, then another, my legs unsteady. I walked aimlessly, letting my feet carry me through streets I didn't recognize, my mind a storm of unanswered questions.
How did I get here?
Why this year?
Why now?
A bright electronic billboard loomed overhead, its neon letters shifting as advertisements rolled across the screen. Beneath it, the date flashed again.
2028.
I swallowed hard.
"This is… before it all happened. Before the Vanishing."
A sharp chill raced down my spine. If I was here, if this truly was the past, then that meant—
It could still be stopped.
A tremor ran through me, a flicker of something dangerous. Hope.
But before I could even grasp that thought, the voice returned.
"It's all a loop. Break the loop. Save humanity."
The words coiled around me like a vice. A loop? Was everything I had done before fated to happen again?
No.
I refused to believe that.
I gritted my teeth, my hands balling into fists.
"I won't let that happen," I whispered.
I couldn't let it happen.
I wouldn't lose them.
I wouldn't lose her.
Izumi's tear-streaked face flashed in my mind, her desperate cries as I shut that door between us. My stomach twisted painfully.
This time… I had to find another way.
I exhaled slowly, forcing the chaos in my mind to settle. My gaze drifted down to the plastic bag still clutched in my grip. A bitter chuckle escaped my lips.
"Guess I'm starting this new timeline with bread and milk."
Fine.
Let's see where this takes me.
With a deep breath, I squared my shoulders and stepped forward.
Somewhere in this city, in this moment, the answers I needed were waiting. And I would find them.
Because this time, I would break the cycle.
This time, I would change everything.