The dim glow of the TV flickered across the room, casting long shadows over empty soda cans and crumpled snack wrappers.
A controller rested in Adam's greasy hands, his fingers mashing buttons with the practiced ease of someone who had spent far too many hours doing the same thing.
"Come on, come on… just one more level."
His breath quickened as his character's health dropped to a sliver. His eyes, red from lack of sleep, stayed glued to the screen.
He knew he should probably stand up, stretch, maybe even eat something that wasn't instant noodles or chips. But that could wait. Everything could wait.
A sudden knock on the door startled him, and before he could react, his character's health bar dropped to zero.
Frustration flared as he snapped, "Who the hell is it?"
A gentle, cautious voice came from the other side of the door.
"It's your mom, Adam… I brought you some food. You haven't eaten properly in weeks."
Adam clenched his jaw, his fingers still gripping the controller. "Leave it and go away," he said, his voice filled with irritation.
His mother stood outside for a few moments, waiting in silence. Then, he heard the sound of her footsteps going downstairs.
With a heavy sigh, Adam pushed himself up from the couch. His T-shirt stretched uncomfortably over his stomach, riding up just enough for his belly button to peek out.
Scratching his overgrown beard, Adam moved through the mess of his room. He pulled open the door.
A tray sat on the floor—a bowl of soup, a small salad, and a single piece of bread.
His lip curled in disgust. "Am I supposed to eat this? Do you think I'm cattle?" he shouted, his voice echoing through the silent house. No response came.
Frustrated, he kicked the tray aside, the soup sloshing onto the floor. Without another thought, he shut the door, locking it behind him before collapsing back onto the couch.
With a deep breath, he hit the restart button on his console.
"If only I could restart my life this easily," he muttered bitterly.
Adam stared at the screen, his eyes locked onto the character he controlled—a handsome, powerful noble, surrounded by a party of beautiful women.
His grip on the controller tightened. "What's the difference between me and you?" he muttered. "I'm a noble too… You were just lucky enough to be born in a damn fantasy world!"
His voice cracked as he shouted at the screen, frustration boiling over. Then, just as quickly, the anger turned into something weaker. His shoulders shook, and tears welled in his eyes.
"Why did I have to be trash?" he whispered, his voice cracking. "Why did I get stuck with bad, poor parents? What's the point of being noble in this world if it means nothing?"
His vision blurred as he dropped the controller onto his lap, tears soaking into his T-shirt.
"I hate God—if there even is one—for making me like this! I hate this world for treating me like a piece of shit! I hate my parents for not giving me better genetics!"
Adam's screams echoed in the room, filled with anger and despair.
But then—
A sudden, unusual pain shot through his chest.
His breath stopped. The world around him dulled, his vision tunneling.
His throat tightened—he wanted to scream, to call for help—but no sound came. His voice was gone.
A crushing pressure pressed down on his chest, radiating outward to his arm, his jaw. Panic spread through his mind as he gripped his chest in pain.
Numbness crept through his body, his limbs grew heavy. A feeling of unbearable fatigue washed over him, dragging him down, down
The screen in front of him blurred. His heart pounded once, twice—then STOPPED.
"Am I dying? Is this what a heart attack feels like? No… I'm only 24. How can this be happening? This isn't fair…"
Those were Adam's last thoughts before the darkness swallowed him whole.
Then—
A strange lightness washed over him, a sensation so foreign it took him a moment to process.
"Whoa… I feel light. It's almost like… I lost all my weight."
Adam tried to move around. It felt like he was in soft jelly. "Where even am I? I can't even open my eyes fully."
He tried to kick around, but his body wouldn't fully listen to him.
"Did my parents get me to the hospital in time?"
Finally, Adam saw a bright light, followed by huge hands grabbing his head.
"Ahhhh!" A woman's scream became clearer as Adam felt those hands pulling him out.
He tried to resist—he liked how heavenly the place felt. It was warm and soft, in contrast to the hands, which were cold and rough.
But Adam lacked the strength, and along with the hands, he felt the walls of his small little room also trying to push him out.
"Goddammit, why can't I even enjoy myself for a second? I had a heart attack—let me rest!" Adam thought angrily. He wanted to say those words out loud, but he couldn't even move his lips.
A rush of cold air struck Adam's skin as he was pulled from the warmth, sending an overwhelming shock through his tiny, uncooperative body.
What the hell?!
His ears rang with the sound of muffled voices—one of them a woman's, breathless and strained, gasping between cries.
Adam put all his strength into speaking, to tell them to shut up, but all that came out was a high-pitched cry. His body jerked as he was turned upside down, his limbs flailing weakly.
"He's breathing!" a voice declared.
"It's a boy!" another voice added.
Adam barely had time to process before he felt himself being placed against something warm and soft. The scent of sweat and something faintly familiar—like milk—filled his nose. A trembling hand brushed against his tiny forehead.
"My baby…" the woman's voice whispered, still panting from exhaustion.
Baby?
The realization finally struck him like.
"Am I in another world? Is this what being reborn feels like? Am I in America? No, that doesn't matter. The good thing is at least I can understand their language."
"And isn't getting hit by a truck the standard way to isekai? …What am I even thinking?"
Then, a new voice spoke—deep, authoritative.
"He's a bit weak, like the rest of his siblings. What will you name him?"
"Hey, that's not nice! Babies are supposed to be weak." Adam felt a bit offended.
The woman holding him let out a tired chuckle, tears in her voice.
"Sylas. His name is Sylas."
"Sylas, huh? Sounds better than Adam, I guess."
Adam fell asleep as his new body, still too fragile, grew tired easily.
His mother's warmth was comforting, a steady rhythm of her heartbeat music to his ears.
"Huh… is this because of my new body that I feel like this toward this stranger? It has to be. Even my old mom felt like an angel when I was young."
"Looking back on it, I think I might miss her a little bit. Not a lot, though."