Chapter 2

The first impression was, "It smells like milk."

He thought he had just woken up from a long sleep.

He couldn't even tell if he was sleepy or not... from what felt like an eternal, shallow slumber, he finally surfaced.

He forced his heavy eyelids open.

The light, which was faintly red and blurry as if seen through his palm, suddenly burst into a flash that pressed against the back of his eyes, flooding his brain.

(Where... am I?)

It felt like he had woken up in a place he didn't remember, as if he had been completely drunk. He tried to rub his eyes, but his hands wouldn't move as he wished. He tried to turn his head, but his body wouldn't cooperate.

He tried to speak, only to realize that his vocal cords wouldn't obey him.

"Aa, uu..."

No matter how he tried to control his words, only such sounds came out.

In this state, there was no room for pride. Even though it was early April and the town was known to be the hottest in Japan during the summer, the cold night air in the unheated office could make him catch a cold.

He tried to shout, but at that moment, he choked violently!

"Keh, kepo..."

Liquid surged up from his stomach.

Before the sourness, the "milky" smell he had felt earlier spread throughout his mouth. He seemed to have vomited, but with his neck immobile, he nearly suffocated.

"Whoa! Sou-kun is throwing up!"

A woman's voice, as if noticing his near-death experience. Immediately, a hand was slipped under his back, and he was lifted up.

Lifted up, that is, but he was a well-built man, not someone who would be lifted so easily, even if he did get counseling after health checkups. Moreover, this was not a princess carry...

It wasn't.

His body was flipped like a pancake, momentarily floating in the air, and then caught again in a large palm. Ugh, his head was spinning.

As soon as his body's orientation changed, he quickly pushed the vomit out of his mouth with his tongue. He hurried to resume breathing!

"Hip, phee~"

Air slowly flowed back into his lungs. His breathing had resumed, but it was so weak that he felt uneasy about his health.

Something was wrong. Even though it was his own body, the sensations he received were too different.

"Sou-kun, you've thrown up everything. We'll have to call Otsuru-san again."

The one who lifted him and peered down was a young woman.

Her vision was still blurry, but as she leaned closer, he could finally see her clearly.

Round, beady eyes, a straight nose, and plump lips were delicately arranged on her sun-kissed small face. She was a beautiful young woman.

"If only I could produce milk, Sou-kun. I'm sorry, I'm not a helpful mother."

Mother!

How could this young woman, who looked to be in her late teens, be his mother!

Moreover, she was speaking to him. That meant he was her son.

He raised his arm slightly and turned his neck, which could only move a little, to confirm. There were small, soft fingers like paw pads.

Ah, a baby's hand.

Despite his confusion, he felt a sense of excitement. They didn't move as he wished, but they seemed to be his own hands.

As his back was rubbed and he was gently swayed, a sudden wave of sleepiness hit him. He had a lot to think about, but he couldn't fall asleep, could he!

Despite the guilt of dozing off like someone who has abandoned a pile of bills, he sank into the irresistible sleep.

It seemed he had been reborn. It must be a reincarnation. The first thing that came to mind, embarrassingly, was a web novel he had once been obsessed with.

Cheats, could they really exist...?

When he woke up later, he would think about everything.

The baby's sleep was exerting an overwhelming constraint.

His thought processes shut down there.