When I came to, I found myself floating in a world of white light.

(Ah ... I must be dead.)

　Strangely, I understood that.

　Somehow I understood that I had lived to adulthood as a Japanese, but died in an accident before my life span was up.

　But my memories of my life were vague.

(Name ... what was it?)

　I can't remember that either.

　Maybe that's why I didn't feel so anxious or afraid, even though I was dead.

　It was more like I was at peace.

　When I looked down, I saw that my body had become a human shape made of light.

　And that body of light gradually dissipated as particles of light from underneath my feet.

(Ah.........)

　This is the end of the "soul", I thought.

　This is how a person's soul melts and disappears in the world of white light - that's when I realized that.

　Grunting.

(What...?

　Something pulled me hard.

　My body, which is becoming a particle of light, is being sucked in one direction, disintegrating.

(Wha, what?)

　I look at it with a little panic.

　Beyond that, there was a 'soul light' that was much bigger than me.

　The particles of light that made up my body are sucked into that stronger radiance.

(.........What was that?)

　As I stared into its presence.

　pointe

　Even my head, including the eyes that stare at me, has finally become a particle of light.

　My thoughts are ... blurred.

　

　..........................

　......................

　....................


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　The next thing I knew, I was looking up at the blue sky this time.

'....What?

　I blinked my eyes.

　As he hurriedly picked himself up, he realized that he was lying on an old stone pedestal.

　On the surface of the pedestal was carved a figure that looked like a magic circle.

(What's this?)

　When I stroked the surface of the stone, it was coarse, but the corners were weathered and rounded.

　It looks like a pedestal made decades or even hundreds of years ago.

　Some parts are covered in green moss.

(...........)

　I looked around, stunned.

　A forest.

　360 degrees, and coming into view was a forest lined with tall trees.

　This was a slightly open space in that forest.

''.........''

　There are no words.　

　I am stunned and try to get off the stone pedestal.

　It's about fifty centimeters high, and without a second thought, I extend one leg toward the ground.

(Hmm........wha?)

　Somehow the ground is so far away!

　Tumble, tumble, tumble.

　I fell to the ground unceremoniously.
　It's it.....

　Without knowing what happened, I put my hands on the stone base and tried to get up.

　Seeing my hand, I stopped moving.

　-- Whose hand is this?

　I thought so.

　I think that when we recognize others, we do it by looking at their faces.

　But when we recognize ourselves, we probably look at our hands, which we often see, rather than the face we can only see in a mirror or a photo or a video.

　So, I know.

　These are definitely not my hands.

　My memories of my life are vague, but I know that much for sure.

　It's not this small and thin.

(I mean.........these are a child's hands, right?)

　I realized that, and once again flattened my body to check it out.

　Yes, I knew it was a child's body.

　Age, maybe 10 to 12 years old.

　What he was wearing was white fabric, like linen, but the sleeves and collar were embroidered with gold thread, so it didn't look cheap.

　I peeked inside the pants.

'Oh, it's on.'

　Apparently, the gender is the same as it was before he was born.

　But slippery.
　It hadn't grown back yet.

　I couldn't help but laugh a little.

　After coming to this point, as expected, I too will understand what happened to me.

(.........I guess it's reincarnation after all.)

　Yeah, I guess I was a fan of novels and comics before I was born.

　That possibility falls easily into my mind.

　However, I didn't expect it to happen to me, as expected.

　At the very least, I hope there's an explanation for God or a cheat.

(................................but my reincarnation doesn't seem to have any of those.

　I sighed and looked up.

　Looking around, all there was, after all, was an expansive view of the forest.

　There was no way I could stay here forever.

　However, which way should I head?

..........

　The wind through the forest was a little chilly, stealing my body heat and disappearing into the sky.

　And when I looked up.

(Huh?)

　In my short vision, I saw something triangular, a head higher than the trees in the forest.

　Was that a roof?

I mean, it's an artifact!

　A flash of hope lit up in the back of my chilled mind.

　With the body of a child still unaccustomed to it, I tried to run towards it.

　Thud.

　Something hit the end of the leather shoes I was wearing.

"?

　There was a piece of gray stone lying in the grass.

　Pretty big.

(............)

　When I looked around again, I saw that there were 7 stone pedestals here that I had been sleeping on.

　However, only my stone pedestal was intact.

　The other 6 stone pedestals had been weathered over the years, or perhaps they had been crushed and rolled on the ground, and were all broken.

　A cold wind blows.

(It looks like a grave.)

　Somehow, I thought so.

　Maybe if my "stone pedestal" had also been broken, I wouldn't be here.

(............)

　I shouldn't.
　I was feeling a little drunk with anxiety.

　Pant.

　I slap myself lightly on the cheek.

'Good!'

　With that, I changed my mind and stepped out of my little feet and into the woods in the direction of the triangular roof I could see.