The late afternoon in Silverwood felt warm. The sunlight dimmed softly behind the clouds—not too hot, but not cold either.
Even so, none of that warmth reached Milo, who was currently being scolded by his boss.
"Didn't I tell you to finish it as soon as possible? Why is it only done now?!"
"Ah, I'm sorry, ma'am. I did work on it right away, but at the very last minute you gave me new data that was completely different, so I had to redo everything," Milo explained carefully.
Instead of calming down, the woman grew even more irritated.
"That's not my fault! Why didn't you check it first? You can't handle something that simple? You've been working here this long and you still don't understand basic things like this?" she snapped, sharp and venomous.
Milo froze.
Uh… how is this still my fault? he grumbled internally.
He usually accepted his boss's anger without much resistance, but today his body felt unwell and his mind was exhausted. Everything felt three times heavier.
If only that woman could disappear forever—his life would be so much more peaceful. But of course, that wasn't possible.
And so, Milo endured a long scolding before he was finally allowed to leave.
He returned to his workspace and found it already empty. His coworkers had gone home long ago.
With a long sigh, he packed up his things and took the elevator down.
But by the time he reached the lobby, evening had already fallen. Milo dragged himself home, his steps heavy, his mind drifting.
Before long, he arrived at his apartment complex. He headed for the elevator, but the button wouldn't light up. He tried again—still nothing.
Just as his patience was about to snap, a security guard approached.
"The elevator's broken, sir," the guard explained.
Milo's mood soured instantly. "Do you know when it'll be fixed?"
"Not sure yet, but management has already called a technician."
Milo could only nod helplessly and turn to the staircase.
Staring at the long stretch of steps rising before him, life suddenly felt even harder. With great reluctance, he began to climb.
By the fifth floor, Milo was panting heavily. Sweat drenched his back.
"Damn… one more floor," he groaned. "Slow and steady…"
He climbed little by little, pausing every few steps.
After that small ordeal, he finally reached the sixth floor.
But just as he turned toward his apartment, a muscular man suddenly appeared and bumped into him.
Thud!
Milo stumbled back.
"Hey! Watch where you're going, idiot!" the man barked. "Move! Or I'll smash you!"
Milo bristled, but the moment he smelled alcohol, he held his tongue and stepped aside. The man swaggered away.
"Hmph." Milo shook his head. "Why'd they even let this guy out of prison? Just stay there—he's making the whole place uncomfortable…"
After grumbling to himself, Milo entered his apartment. The moment he opened the door, an orange cat greeted him affectionately, rubbing against his leg.
Milo stroked the cat fondly. "Hehehe, come here, Pumpkin… come on, kitty…"
After playing with him for a bit, Milo headed to shower. But before he could change clothes, he heard a soft knock outside. He peeked through the peephole and saw a familiar figure.
"Hello, brother-in-law! What's up?" Milo greeted as he opened the door.
Clayton smiled warmly. "Your sister wants you to come for dinner. Get dressed; the food's ready."
"Alright, I'll be right over."
Milo changed, then headed out with Pumpkin walking ahead of him. He shook his head, amused by the cat's enthusiasm.
"Such a greedy cat…"
When they reached Anya's apartment, Clayton opened the door.
"Come in."
Milo stepped inside casually. Pumpkin immediately darted to the kitchen where Anya was cooking.
"Hi, Sis!"
"Hey! Just a moment, almost done," Anya replied with a smile.
Pumpkin rubbed against her legs. She petted him and gave him a small treat.
When dinner was ready, they ate together. Anya looked at her brother with concern.
"Milo, is work okay lately? You look exhausted."
"It's fine, Sis. I've just been feeling under the weather."
"If something's wrong, you can tell me, alright?"
Milo nodded, and Anya dropped the subject so he wouldn't feel pressured.
Instead, she kept piling food onto his plate, making him smile—grateful and touched.
But that smile faded quickly. Old memories resurfaced.
Before he was ten, his life had been normal.
Then one day, his parents had an accident. People said they crashed into a rampaging elephant—some exaggerated it further, calling it a mammoth.
Milo had stayed silent through it all.
Amid the grief, a foreign memory suddenly surfaced in his mind.
He realized that he… had reincarnated. He never understood how or why.
But that awakening made him slow and seemingly mentally troubled.
Anya, five years older, had become extremely protective from then on.
For ten years, Milo lived with anxiety. He feared that someday this world would turn into something strange—like a novel.
He trained in martial arts and survival skills, yet found no sign of anything supernatural.
Oddly, his uneasiness had returned recently—stronger than ever, like his worst premonition was approaching.
As Milo drifted off into thought, Anya called out, worried.
"Milo? What's wrong?"
"Oh, it's nothing. Your cooking's amazing, Sis! No wonder you became a five-star chef," he said quickly, trying to divert her attention.
After dinner, they watched TV.
But then a strange news report came on: a sudden surge in pet-bite incidents.
Anya and Clayton brushed it off casually.
Milo did not.
That uneasy feeling only grew stronger.
When it got late, Milo headed home. In front of his door, he saw a rat. Pumpkin immediately chased after it.
"Pumpkin! Come on, let's go home! Tomorrow, okay?!" Milo shouted.
Pumpkin reluctantly obeyed. He was used to following orders—Milo had trained him since he was little.
They went inside, and after a long day, Milo went to sleep. Silence filled the room.
But in the middle of the night, Pumpkin opened his eyes. He leapt down, slipped through the small gap in the window, and disappeared into the darkness.
Milo didn't notice.
The night passed quietly—too quietly, like the calm before a storm.
The next morning, Milo woke up early as usual. But when Pumpkin was nowhere to be found, anxiety hit him immediately.
"Damn it, where'd that little guy go?"
Pumpkin usually sat by his feet every morning. His absence made the apartment feel wrong.
Milo found the window slightly open and panicked.
If Pumpkin had gone out through there, it was dangerous—the apartment was on the sixth floor.
He rushed to the window.
Then Milo froze.
"What… what happened…?"
The skyscrapers were gone. In their place stretched an endless expanse of ancient forest, as far as the eye could see.
Silent. Far too silent.
Milo rubbed his eyes. Once. Twice. Still the same.
What he'd feared for ten years had finally come true.
As he trembled, staring out the window, a small creature suddenly leapt in through the gap.
In the dark silhouette, a pair of glowing yellow eyes stared back—making Milo's hair stand on end.