Chapter 1: 1. Regression
The smell of disinfectant brushed past the tip of my nose. As my awareness slowly returned, I felt a hard pressure weighing down on my shoulder.
When I opened my eyes slowly, a dirty cement ceiling and a dimly glowing incandescent light came into view. I stared blankly at the bulb swaying on a single wire, then slowly raised my upper body.
“Urgh...”
Because I’d been lying on the cold, hard floor for a long time, even that simple movement sent a dull pain shooting through my body. I lifted my head and looked around.
Like the ceiling, the walls were made of rough, dirty concrete, and the door was solid metal. I scanned the room several times, trying to stay calm, but ended up biting my lip in confusion.
“This place...”
It was all too familiar. If my memory was correct, this was the solitary cell in the Awakener research facility where I’d been dragged against my will two years ago.
That made no sense. This place had been blown to pieces two years ago—the building itself had collapsed. So then... what the hell is this place? And why am I here?
As I sat there blinking, unable to accept what was happening—
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“...!”