TELEPORTATION SUCCESSFUL
"Ow… Where am I? Did I just die?"
Henry looked around, confused. The room was unfamiliar—completely foreign. Every corner screamed mystery. He had never seen this place before.
COLLECTING MEMORY
10%
25%
46%
65%
78%
89%
99%
100%
MEMORY COLLECTION COMPLETE
TRANSFERRING MEMORY TO USER
10
9
8
"What the heck is going on?" Henry muttered, narrowing his eyes at the strange glowing text floating in front of him.
7
6
5
Memory transfer? What kind of memory? I still remember who I am…
4
3
2
1
RECEIVING MEMORY
Suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed through his head. It felt like thousands of burning needles were piercing his brain at once.
A scorching heat surged through his skull—followed by a chilling freeze, like someone had dumped a mountain of snow into his mind. It crawled from the top of his head, down every nerve.
"ARGHHHH! MY HEAD! IT HURTS! PLEASE, MAKE IT STOP!!"
He screamed, his voice cracking. This pain wasn't just physical—it was mental chaos.
It felt like an avalanche of memories and information was crashing into his brain. Everything came in so fast, he couldn't make sense of it.
His mind short-circuited. Every time he tried to think, the pain got worse. He writhed in agony.
Images flashed before his eyes—faces he didn't recognize: a red-haired woman with purple eyes, a blond guy with red eyes, and so many others.
It was like watching a movie at the speed of light, overwhelming his senses and making him nauseous.
MEMORY TRANSFER COMPLETE
"Damn… What just happened? I can't even think straight… not that I ever really do, hahaha."
Henry tried to joke, but he was still catching his breath.
"I don't even know how to explain this. I felt frozen… then burned… then frozen again. My head's spinning."
Slowly, things around him started to feel… familiar. The walls. The furniture. "Why does this room look kind of familiar?" he muttered.
Something was definitely off. Curious, Henry walked over to the mirror.
"ARGHHH! WHO IS THAT?!" he screamed at his reflection.
He touched his face in disbelief.
"Why do I look like some random kid? But… this face… it's familiar."
A strange feeling buzzed in his brain, like this new face was part of the puzzle he just got thrown into.
For some reason… I feel really lazy right now. Not that it's anything new, haha.
Henry shrugged. "Let's check the system. System, open!"
=== STATUS ===
Name: Jeremy Oxford
Level: 0 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
Deaths: 0
Universes Visited: 2
Class: None
[HP]: 100 / 100
[Energy]: 100 / 100
=== STATS ===
Strength: 26
Speed: 28
Endurance: 24
Stamina: 22
Intelligence: 30
[Abilities / Powers]: None
[Available Points]: 0
=== INVENTORY ===
=== RULES ===
"Wait, why is my name Jeremy Oxford now? But… that name feels kind of familiar…" Henry frowned.
"Why are my stats so low now? Everything dropped—except intelligence?" Henry let out a dry laugh.
"And why does it say I've been through two universes?"
Hold on…
"What day is it?" He instinctively reached into his pocket, pulled out a phone, and checked.
"Crap. It's Monday. I have school!"
Wait a minute… why did I think about school? I already graduated. What is happening?!
"I'd better get ready first…"
He looked around for a school uniform and rushed to the bathroom. Somehow, he knew exactly where it was…
like he had lived here for years. The steps, the path—everything felt too familiar.
He quickly searched for a school uniform and rushed to the bathroom. Strangely, he knew exactly where it was. As if he'd lived in that house for years.
The familiarity was unsettling.
*****
Henry arrived at the school.
He walked through the corridors like he'd done it every day. His feet moved on their own, guided by memories that weren't his.
"How do I know where the bathrooms are? The exits? Even the classrooms…"
"I've never been here before. This doesn't make sense. And that universe count—why is it higher?"
"Don't tell me… is this another world?"
His thoughts raced as panic stirred inside him.
He sat at a desk in what was apparently "his" classroom, taking a deep breath and whispering carefully:
"System… open."
=== STATUS ===
Name: Jeremy Oxford
Level: 0 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
Deaths: 0
Universes Visited: 2
Class: None
[HP]: 100 / 100
[Energy]: 100 / 100
=== STATS ===
Strength: 26
Speed: 28
Endurance: 24
Stamina: 22
Intelligence: 30
[Abilities / Powers]: None
[Available Points]: 0
=== INVENTORY ===
=== RULES ===
"Please… give me an answer. What is going on with me?" he whispered.
Suddenly, a hand tapped him on the shoulder.
"Hey, Jeremy. What's up?"
Henry turned his head. A blond guy with sharp red eyes stood there—cool, confident, like he ruled the school.
Henry's eyes widened.
That face… I know that face. From those memory flashes.
"Oh… hey, Morgan."
Morgan leaned in, smiling with a strange edge in his tone. "Don't forget… recess. Behind the school. Got it?"
He added in a whisper, "You won't be safe if you don't show."
Henry forced a laugh. "Haha, yeah… sure."
Morgan walked off toward his group of friends. Henry sighed and closed the system screen.
But then a thought crossed his mind.
"Wait a minute… can I see someone else's status?"
As if the system heard him, the interface suddenly shifted.
STATUS SCANNING ENABLED.
PLEASE SAY THE TRIGGER WORD TO INITIATE.
What's the trigger word? he muttered, still staring at Morgan.
"Status open."
Immediately, Morgan's status appeared.
=== STATUS ===
Name: Morgan Spectrum
[HP]: 100 / 100
[Energy]: 100 / 100
=== STATS ===
Strength: 46
Speed: 38
Endurance: 44
Stamina: 42
Intelligence: 24
=== INFO ===
High school student, age 16. Popular. Single.
Skills:
[Martial Arts Expert]
[Physical Strength]
[Wealthy]
[Sports Prodigy]
[Many Friends/Subordinates]
*****
Recess arrived.
Henry locked himself in a bathroom stall, breathing heavily.
"Alright, let's see what this guy can do."
He tapped on Morgan's skill tree.
[Martial Arts Mastery]
* Taekwondo (Intermediate)
* Karate (Advanced)
* Boxing (Advanced)
* Judo (Beginner)
[Physical]
Face: 82%
Body: 86%
[Wealth]
Allowance: 2 million IDR/day (from parents)
[Sports]
* Basketball
* Soccer
* Swimming
* …
[Friends/Subordinates]
"Wait… I can even see who his friends are? That's… a little creepy. I'll check that later."
Henry sighed.
"At least now I know I can view other people's status. That might come in handy."
"But what the hell is with this 'Face: 82%' stuff? What is this, a beauty pageant? Come on, System…"
He rolled his eyes.
"Break's almost over. I should go… but something tells me this isn't gonna end well."
He gulped.
"He's a martial arts expert. What am I supposed to do?"
Henry's body trembled on its own. His instincts screamed at him.
This body… was used to being bullied by Morgan.
"Is this karma? Is this supposed to be some kind of punishment?!" he growled. "I asked for an isekai, not a high school drama!"
This wasn't the fantasy world he'd imagined—no magic, no swords. Just cruel reality with a familiar twist.
And worst of all… he didn't even know where the original "Jeremy" had gone.
Why did this body feel so lonely? Even at home, even here at school. Where were Jeremy's parents?
Questions began to eat away at him.
*****
Henry stepped into the back yard of the school.
Morgan and his cronies were already waiting.
The air was cold—like the calm before a storm.
Well, Henry muttered, guess this is karma…
"You're late, Jeremy," Morgan said with a smirk. "Which means… you get a bonus."
Morgan didn't wait.
He punched Henry in the stomach—hard.
Henry gasped, pain exploding in his chest. He felt like throwing up, but nothing came out.
He doubled over, barely breathing.
Then the kicks came.
Over and over, his legs were stomped on. His body screamed. He fell to the ground, cheek slamming into cold dirt.
He could smell the blood and dust mixing under his nose.
Then—bam. A hard kick to the head.
More blood.
His mind went blank.
It reminded him of all the awful things he'd done in the past.
The bullying went on—even after the bell rang.
Morgan ended it with a brutal slam that left Henry motionless.
They walked away like nothing had happened.
Henry lay there, groaning.
"Damn…" he coughed. Blood was in his mouth.
I want to fight back. But… if I do, I'll regret it.
They're sixteen. I'm twenty-two. Even if I look like one of them, I'm still older. Wiser—supposedly.
He was stuck in a dilemma.
If he fought back… would he just make things worse? Would he become the bully again?
"This… this is what it feels like to be bullied," he whispered.
"I'm sorry… to everyone I ever hurt. I'm so sorry…"
He sat there, face bruised, lips bleeding.
But then—he stood.
Tears wouldn't fix anything.
Fear wouldn't help.
He had to take the pain. Alone.
*****
Henry made it back home.
He patched himself up.
He showered, flinching from every sting on his skin.
Then he sat in silence, trying to piece together everything that had happened.
Trying to figure out why.
And what would come next.