PROLOGUE
Zack lay on his bed and released a weak, trembling breath.
Once, he had been just an ordinary office worker — tired, overworked, and always rushing deadlines. But everything changed the day the doctor told him he had cancer.
After countless treatments and hospital visits, with nothing improving, Zack made a quiet decision: he left the city.
He moved to the countryside, bought a small piece of land, and turned it into a garden. The soil, the wind, the flowers… they brought him peace that hospitals never could.
One day, he found a stray dog wandering near his garden — thin, lonely, but gentle. Zack adopted her and named her Lumi. She became his only companion. Later, after a checkup at the vet, he learned she was pregnant. A few months later, Lumi gave birth to four healthy puppies.
Those days — the garden, the sunlight, the puppies playing in the grass — became the happiest days of Zack's entire life.
But he knew happiness wouldn't last.
As his symptoms worsened, he was forced to put Lumi and her puppies — Sol, Mica, Rune, and Poppy — up for adoption. It broke him, but he didn't want them to watch him waste away.
"Well… it was fun while it lasted," Zack whispered.
He sighed softly, unable to stop himself from thinking aloud. His vision blurred as tears slid down his cheeks.
The truth was simple and cruel: he didn't want to die.
His fingers trembled. His breath grew shallow. His world dimmed.
Then—
> [Ding! The host is eligible for reincarnation.]
"Re…incarnation?" Zack's fading eyes widened slightly.
That was the last thing he heard before darkness swallowed everything.
---
Suddenly — or perhaps after an eternity — Zack's eyes fluttered open.
He found himself floating in a vast space filled with glowing symbols, drifting code, and endless holographic screens flashing messages in front of him.
> [The host is eligible for reincarnation.]
[Reincarnating in 15 seconds.]
"Reincarnation…?" Zack muttered. "Like those novels… or the webtoons…"
It sounded absurd — yet strangely familiar.
After all, he had read a lot of them when work grew boring, and two of his closest friends were webtoon artists who dragged him into their strange hobbies.
More messages appeared:
> [Coordinates locked.]
[Reincarnation processing.]
10…
5…
3…
1…
A blinding flash swallowed him whole.
The world dissolved into darkness again.
---