POV – Casian M. Walker
"Was getting better… she was getting better… so why…?"
A boy stood in front of a closed coffin, about to be lowered into the ground. Around him were friends and colleagues from the hospital.
"I don't understand… what happened? There has to be an answer… something… was it someone? A new bacteria? Or some space variant? What… what killed you… mom?"
Inside the coffin lay the boy's mother, who until recently had shown remarkable improvement against an unknown disease.
A team of doctors, virologists, pathologists, and scientists—including his father—had studied the illness meticulously. It had appeared three years ago, gradually destroying cardiac tissue in agonizing death—or at least that's what should have happened. Dad had managed to create a medicine that blocked the pain but not the damage. They tried everything but found no answers. It only attacked the original host, didn't spread by any known means, and had just appeared one day. This was artificially created, not natural… or perhaps supernatural.
"We can't study this with current technology. We'll need tech from maybe fifty years in the future." The boy's gaze was focused, searching for an answer, as if he could still save her.
A hand fell heavily on his shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts.
He looked at the owner of the hand: a man in a lab coat with messy hair like a mad scientist, deep dark circles under his eyes, and a stunned expression.
"Dad…" Now seeing him clearly, he looked so tired.
Since being informed of her death, he had maintained that look—one of disbelief. Even now, as he stared at me, that was all I saw.
"Everything…" the words barely came out. "Everything will be fine, son. I'm here with you." Finally, that made me realize.
Mom was gone. She wasn't coming back.
It hit me hard. The pain in my chest found its way out through my eyes, and before I knew it, I was crying like a little kid. Even though I was a little kid.
"Waaaaa…" I sobbed with all my strength. It hurt so much. Dad crouched down and hugged me tightly, yet tenderly.
"It's okay, little pup… it's okay to cry. It wasn't your fault. Everything will be fine." Dad cried with me—apparently, he needed to let it out too.
I cried until they buried Mom. Dad never let go of me.
Suddenly, I felt something cold touch my chest. Something started to suffocate me. Though I could still breathe and my body didn't move, everything seemed slower. Something deep inside me was fading. I fought with all my strength. Somehow, I found myself in another place, facing a fat man strangling my neck.
"Sorry, buddy, but this is supposed to be my isekai body. You know you shouldn't be here. That idiot Light should have given me this body immediately, not made me fight for it. Blame him." The fat man spoke, tightening his grip with a grin.
'Who… doesn't matter. The idiot wants my body. I have to get rid of him… how?' Panic surged as I tried to push him off, but he was bigger, heavier—just fat, but using his weight to his advantage to choke me.
"Damn it, why won't you die? How long? A minute? And you're still holding on? The idiot Light didn't say I'd have to fight inside your mind to get the body. I hate him treating me like I'm nothing. I'll get strong and go after him." Somehow drawing strength from somewhere, he redoubled his effort.
Casian, face already purple and turning blue, had no strength left. He looked around desperately for a way out, help, anything.
"Please… someone, please…" His vision darkened, hands fell to his sides. He was losing.
"Die already! Die, for God's sake…" Sweat poured from the fat man as he shouted.
Refusing to give in, Casian tried to think of an escape. Fight. Fight for my body.
Fight for my body.
Fight for my…
Fight.
In my mind…
Suddenly, Casian opened his eyes wide. He found the answer. MY. DAMN. MIND.
The space rippled. An invisible force flung Fatty away from Casian.
"Cough… cough cough… damn fat idiot…" clutching his throat, Casian tried to speak.
Fatty slowly got up from the floor, looking at him with astonishment and terror. "You… what did you do? You shouldn't be able to do that. This is MY ISEKAI, MY built body, MY world—you should obey and let me consume you for ME." With every word, the fat man rose, stomping the floor like a tantrum-throwing child.
Casian stared in disbelief. This guy is insane. Casian decided to expel him from his body; he didn't want to hear any more nonsense.
He concentrated, closing his eyes and pushing with all his might. "Get out of here." Strong winds dragged Fatty against the far wall of the mental space, slamming him into it.
"Arggghhh…" Fatty cried in pain, unable to move. The wind finally stopped, and he fell to the floor again.
Exhausted, Casian paused. He didn't know how to remove him completely. Maybe creating an exit in this mental space would help…
Casian was about to test this theory when… "You can't get me out of here." Fatty got up again, smiling as if he'd won.
"This body was made for me. I'm part of this body. It's mine. One of us must consume the other to survive, and you won't win." Laughing maniacally, he pushed his hands forward.
A weight pressed on Casian, forcing him to kneel, disbelief etched on his face. "H-how? This is my mind!"
"Late to realize, but this is a soul fight, not a mind fight. My older soul is stronger. I will claim this body as mine! Hahaha!" Fatty laughed like a maniac—completely unhinged.
Casian analyzed his words: a soul battle for control of the body. He couldn't remove Fatty. Assuming everything was correct, an exorcism would work—but he didn't know how. When this is over, I swear… I'll study the Bible.
Fatty continued pressing him. With his other hand, he started absorbing glowing energy orbs. Slowly, Casian began to fade, becoming transparent.
Panic surged again. He needed a solution, now. "Damn fat…" he whispered.
He thought of a plan. He just needed one opportunity to end this fat man.
"Who's behind you?" Casian asked, face pressed to the floor.
"Ha! Old trick. I won't fall for that, buddy. Now just surrender, okay? I want to start my new life, and your body is perfect—perfect genes, perfect potential. I'll be powerful and rule this world." He lost himself in fantasies of being king of the world.
Suddenly, a hand touched his shoulder. "Wha—?" Startled, he looked behind him. Nobody was there.
"What was that?" Fatty wondered. That moment of distraction cost him dearly.
Feeling the weight lighten, Casian didn't hesitate. He pushed Fatty into the wall and focused, disintegrating him into tiny soul particles.
"Nooo, stop! You can't do this! This is supposed to be my body, my isekai story! I was gonna have a harem, beat Kirito's balls, f*** Mikasa in front of Eren… God, why are you so unfair?" Fatty screamed and struggled, tears streaming.
"What a pathetic being. You had to push it to the moment I gave you the chance, and I had to destroy you when I could. I won't make that mistake again." Casian said, disgusted.
"Forgive me, please! I'll leave immediately! I won't bother you again! Please, I just wanted an isekai story!" Fatty writhed like a worm, crying and begging.
"No… disappear now, trash." Casian's gaze was cold. He had considered letting him go—after all, he didn't want to kill a person—but Fatty revealed his intentions so clearly. Traitorous and cowardly people like this aren't trustworthy.
"STOP!"
Casian squinted, concentrated. Fatty's body began vanishing, breaking into tiny lights.
"STOP I TELL YOU!"
First the legs disappeared, then the waist, hands, and arms—finally, only the head remained.
"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME, DAMN KID! I SWEAR I'LL KILL YOU, YOU AND LIGHT, EVERYONE!" Fatty lost it, foam at the mouth.
With a look of pity, Casian finished the job.
"…."
Silence filled the space.
"…."
He sighed and sat on the floor, finally relaxed. The madness was over.
Casian looked at the lights around him. Technically, Fatty wasn't dead—he had been turned into multiple fragments of his soul.
He said he was absorbing the other's soul. With a sigh, he drew the lights back into his body.
He could have left them, but he'd live in fear of Fatty returning and winning. He didn't want that.
No choice…
When the last light entered his body, something happened. His mind received Fatty's memories, giving him a terrible headache.
"Aghh… damn fat…" clutching his forehead, he still had time to curse him.
Before his eyes, Fatty's life unfolded: no skills, no achievements, no loved ones. Nothing in Fatty's life outside a screen mattered. He only had virtual friends, ate junk food, lived off his parents' life insurance, and by almost thirty had never studied, never worked, never tried at anything. He blamed the world for his tragedies, for his myopia, for his bullies, and for his parents' death. Fatty was smart, but he wasted his talent. He knew it and hated himself. Anime and cartoons were the only happiness he ever had. He knew everything about them, an unconditionally devoted fan, the freakiest freak—and he was proud of it.
Now I feel sorry for that damn fat guy. "Tch…" Annoyed at his own empathy.
Disbelief struck when he found memories that matched his world.