Just a moment ago, I was talking with the Administrator, but now my surroundings had changed from a pure white room to a space dyed in various colors.
'Wow...'
For a moment, I thought the sight of the various colors was beautiful,
'B-breath?!!'
Suddenly feeling breathless, I hurriedly moved my body, and—
'Splash!!'
"Cough!! Huff!!!"
Only then did I realize that I was in shallow water.
"Khek?! Ugh... water went up my nose..."
After catching my breath for a moment and standing up, I saw a vast grassland spread out before me.
"Except for the fact that there's only grass around, well, the scenery is nice..."
For a while, I absentmindedly admired the surroundings,
'...Huh?'
Feeling a murderous gaze from somewhere, I quickly turned around and saw a creature resembling a werewolf hiding in the bushes, licking its lips and watching me from a distance.
"W-what is that?!"
"Grrr..."
As if insulted by being discovered, the monster walked out of the bushes, growling as it slowly approached me, and—
'Gyaaaak!!!'
It instantly rushed at me and slammed me to the ground with both arms.
"What the hell?!"
Sensing that its next target was my neck, I raised my left arm, and its sharp teeth dug into my flesh. But it didn't stop there; it began tearing my body apart with its beast-like, hook-shaped claws.
"Kuaaaak!!!? You crazy bastard!!!"
Instantly overwhelmed by tremendous pain, the desperate urge to survive filled my mind. My body reflexively grabbed a nearby stone and began slamming it into the creature's head.
'Kehyang?!!'
As we exchanged reckless blows, I luckily succeeded in driving the stone into its right eye.
"Take this!!!"
'Kek?! Kehuk!!?'
The moment its eye was struck, its bite weakened. Taking advantage of the opening, I didn't pull my arm out; instead, I shoved it deeper into its mouth, pushing the beast back, and—
"Now it's your turn to get beaten!!!"
'Keruk?! Kehek?!!!'
As the situation reversed in an instant, fear began to cloud its eyes, but—
"Die! Die!! Just die!!!"
Already half-crazed, I started pounding it with all my might, no longer seeing the fear in its eyes.
"Haa...haa..."
How many minutes had passed? When I finally came to my senses, the creature was dead, its jaw, neck, and chest crushed, bleeding profusely from its eyes and mouth.
"Hoo..."
As I regained my senses and pulled my left arm from its throat, exhaling, the bite wound and the lacerations all over my body began to scream with agonizing pain, as if announcing their presence, and—
"Kkueuk?! Kuaaaaaaak?!!!!"
The endorphins my body had been releasing to endure the pain finally ran out, and I reached my limit as the sudden agony overwhelmed me.
"S-save me... anyone... please..."
And so, I faced my first death in this world less than an hour after arriving.
.
.
.
"Heuk?!!"
I don't know how much time had passed, but I came to my senses again.
"Heuk...heuk... Could this be the power of the ability I received?"
The moment I regained consciousness, memories of the ability given by the Administrator flooded back. I hurriedly checked my condition, and—
"There really isn't a single wound?"
As if nothing had happened, I couldn't even find a small scratch.
"My clothes are still torn, but... at least this is something."
Since the memory of the ability only returned after I died once, it seemed measures had been taken to ensure I could only recall it after experiencing death.
"...Was it set up so that I don't die recklessly?"
I don't know why such a restriction was placed, but if the memory that came to mind is true, my ability can be largely explained in three ways.
First: The interval between physical death and resurrection is almost nonexistent. At the moment of death and revival, all accumulated fatigue and wounds are completely healed.
Second: However, if I am not killed, physical damage remains, making me vulnerable to things that cause loss of consciousness, such as poison, suffocation, or concussions.
Third: At the moment of death and regeneration, any impurities in that location, regardless of the material, are removed as the body regenerates.
"Based on the memories I received, those are the three main points... but is it true that I can still die of old age?"
Moreover, this memory isn't just an explanation; it shows how others have used this ability, which only increased my doubts.
"Well... I guess I have to believe it; there's nothing else I can do..."
After that, I headed to the shallow lake where I first woke up to wash my blood-soaked clothes and body, and—
"...Huh?"
Only then did I notice that my body had become younger.
"This... seems to be around when I was fourteen years old..."
My reflection in the water was my childhood self, about 150 cm tall with a decent appearance.
"This seems to be just before I was caught in the landslide..."
The reason I didn't quickly notice that my body had become younger was quite simple.
"Back then, I hardly grew because of the cracks all over my body..."
In elementary school, I had metal pins inserted into my bones due to surgery. Around the time I should have hit a growth spurt, another accident caused cracks in all my bones. I focused so much on recovery that I didn't grow at all, only reaching 160 cm by the time I graduated middle school.
"Even in high school, I hardly grew..."
For reference, my height in my previous life was exactly 165 cm when I woke from the coma.
"...This time, I'll grow taller, right?"
It wasn't exactly a short height, but both my parents were over 175 cm. Whenever I did something well, they would pat my head; before I knew it, I had developed a complex and always secretly wished to be taller.
"Yeah, I'll grow. Height is genetic, after all."
After washing the blood from my body and clothes, I began walking to leave the grassland, and—
"Oh! Finally, a road!! But... should I call this a road?"
After walking through the grass for about ten minutes, I luckily found a dirt path with wheel tracks and began following it.
"Can I make it to the city with that dungeon or tower? I hope I'm not going in the opposite direction?"
Contrary to my worries, after walking for about thirty minutes, a tall tower and stone walls began to appear in the distance, and—
"Hmm... are all those carriages waiting in line?"
Similarly, carriages lined up at the entrance also started to become visible.
"...I hope I don't have to pay money or show something like an ID to pass through?"
As I got closer to the walls, all sorts of thoughts filled my head, but since there was no other way, I decided to just walk toward the entrance, when—
"...Huh? Young man over there, why are you walking alone in such a state?"
Suddenly, a passing coachman spoke to me from behind.
"...Me?"
"Since you're the only one walking right now, of course I'm talking to you."
"Ah... well..."
Caught off guard, I quickly thought of an excuse, and—
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