Incredible pain radiated through me like electric currents, mingling with a bone-chilling cold that seeped into my very core, only to be interrupted by sudden waves of searing heat. Each sensation clashed violently within me. Slowly, almost excruciatingly so, I attempted to lift my heavy head, desperate to escape the piercing, blinding light that seemed to bore into my eyes. However, the effort felt nearly insurmountable. The best I could manage was to shift my gaze, and when I finally succeeded, I discovered that I was sprawled on a frigid, gritty street.
A few feet away, shadowy figures loomed, their faces obscured and indistinct, yet their expressions conveyed a blend of concern and horror. Some of them were aiming their smartphone cameras at me, the screens glinting in the harsh light, while others had their hands clamped over their mouths, a reflexive gesture of shock. The world around me was surreal, muffled, as I couldn't hear a thing above the relentless ringing that bombarded my ears.
'What's happening? Why are you all staring at me?' I thought, frustration boiling beneath my paralysis as I strained to move again with no success. Just when I felt the encroaching darkness threatening to pull me under, I fought to cling to consciousness. After a brief but intense struggle, I finally managed to divert my gaze downward, wanting to understand my condition.
I wished I didn't.
Otherwise, I would have saved myself the horror of seeing my lower half bent in the complete opposite direction.
Shards of broken bone were sticking out of my body as a pool of blood slowly seeped out of me. I gasped and tore my eyes away from the sight and finally found the source of the light that had been trying to blind me. At that point, it seemed that my ears decided to finally work again.
The sound of a blaring, unending horn filled my ears as I stared at a white truck with a bent and bloodied front grill.
'Oh… I was run over, wasn't I? I thought before my vision swam and blurred away. With one final breath, my eyes closed, and I fell into my final sleep.
XXXX
Usually, getting hit by a speeding truck while crossing the street after buying some late-night tacos would have been the end of most people's stories; it seemed fate had other plans for me.
Fourteen whole years had passed since I had been reborn, or born again? Eh, whatever the case, I had to go through growing up from a child once again.
And let me tell you, growing up from an infant to a fourteen-year-old was quite the challenge. I don't even want to remember those first few years.
Anyways, moving on from that, as I grew, I eventually learned the language of where I had been born and realized I hadn't been born in my previous country, but in Japan. Every Weeb's dream.
With my understanding of my new country's language, I looked at one of the calendars in my house and discovered that I had either been sent back in time or reborn in an alternate universe that was vastly different from my own. This theory seemed plausible because several iconic pieces of pop culture and significant events were absent from this world.
Still, none of that really mattered as I grew up, alive and healthy in a relatively normal environment. Well, if you can call growing up in a large Yakuza compound normal, that is.
Right, that bit is a bit important to mention. But I can get into that later.
For now, I should introduce myself. My name, this time around, is Raku Ichijō—a completely typical teenager.
Eh, at least on the surface.
"This must be the place," I muttered as I walked up to an abandoned building on one of Tokyo's less populated and popular streets. Caution and Do Not Enter signs littered the windows and main door. "Could one of them actually be there?"
With a shrug, I walked up to the building and grabbed the door handle. Unsurprisingly, the door was locked. No doubt about the recent break-ins. But after a second, a soft click could be heard, and I twisted the handle.
Stepping inside the building with my school bag on my shoulder, I looked around and saw the dilapidated state of the first floor. Closing my eyes, I hummed and looked up at the second floor of the building. "Well, what do you know, there is something here," I said calmly and closed the door behind me.
As I walked down the hallway and prepared to climb the stairs, I reflected on why I was here in the first place.
For several weeks now, during my lunch breaks and in the corridors of my middle school, I had overheard many of my classmates whispering and talking about a new test of courage that was gaining popularity.
This test involved daring students walking through an old, abandoned building that had once been used to rent space to small, emerging businesses. The building mysteriously closed down due to rumors of ghostly activity, which led to fewer and fewer new tenants.
Many of my classmates dismissed the rumors as silly and turned the situation into a game. As a result, various groups of students ventured into the building to prove their bravery, only to come running out in fear after encountering something inside.
From there, rumors began to circulate through the school, and some students decided to prove everyone wrong by going into the building.
Only to run away crying and screaming.
"Hoh… another brave soul?"
A detached, hollow, and deep voice said from in front of me.
I stopped walking and noticed that I was standing on the second floor. It was pitch black with scattered office supplies on the ground. There, standing on the ground with an otherworldly glow was a puffy green-haired spirit with orange skin. "Now then, should I curse you or will you go ahead and run away like the rest?"
"So you're the spirit haunting this building?" I asked, my tone even and unbothered. "So? What's your deal?"
The spirit blinked and crossed his arms, seemingly taken aback by my lack of fear. "Well, this is new. I am the spirit of a man who jumped so high that he bashed his head into the ceiling of this very building! As revenge, I now haunt any who dares enter!"
"I see… why did you jump into the ceiling?"
"…I saw a cockroach on the ground."
I blinked at the spirit, causing it to bristle under my unimpressed stare. "I'm sorry to hear that. But I have to exorcise you now. Please stay still," I said and raised my hand.
"Hah?! You? Exorcise me?! Don't make me laugh-AAAHHHH!" The spirit was interrupted as I unleashed a blast of energy that lit up the room in a kaleidoscope of colors.
The spirit screamed as it twisted and contorted by my psychic energy until it exploded in a burst of light.
I lowered my arm and watched as a faint ghost of the spirit smiled as he ascended into the ceiling. Pressing my hands together, I offered the spirit a small prayer.
"Rest in peace," I said and turned to leave.
As you can see, I, Raku Ichijō, am an esper.
A rather strong one at that.