Cultivational Rebirth

Death, or what?

A black-haired male named Nemeris went to a convenience store at night. "Hello, Nemeris. Welcome back," the clerk said with a soft smile. Nemeris was a regular at the convenience store, he was familiar with most of the workers which was the reason why he was a regular in the first place. "Hey, Nanami," Nemeris smiled back. Nanami is the clerk.

Nemeris roamed through the aisles, collecting things he needed in each aisle. "How's business so far?" Nemeris asked, walking up to the register with his basket. "Slow. Yet hectic on weekends for no reason," Nanami sighed, scanning Nemeris's items. "Heh, can't relate," Nemeris chuckled, placing the scanned items into a plastic bag.

"You should be more careful, Nemeris. The news announced an escaped criminal," Nanami warned, her tone suddenly turning serious as her glare was piercing through Nemeris. In Nemeris's perspective, she looked like the wolves forcing on a mean look. "I'll be careful, don't worry about me," Nemeris lightly laughed before picking up his filled bag and made his way out of the store.

Nemeris placed the bag in the box attached to the front of his bike. He got on and started to pedal home. It was dark and the only source of light was the moon, light poles, and light from people's windows. Despite being in a lonely neighborhood, Nemeris couldn't help but get the uneasy feeling of being watched.

Nemeris started to pick up speed with his bike, looking around quickly from time to time. By the time he made it home, his hair was messed up from the wind that hit his face the faster he biked. Nemeris quickly locked his bike and grabbed the bag, hurriedly entering his home.

"I'm home!" Nemeris yelled out to his mother but no reply. Curiously, Nemeris placed the bag down on the kitchen counter and walked to his mother's room. A sudden stench was found in his mother's room. Nemeris held his breath and looked through his mother's room but nothing could be the result of the stench, he didn't find his mother either. There was one last spot he had to check left, the closet. Nemeris went to open the closet but it was locked.

Furious, Nemeris applied all his strength to pull the closet doors open. After a few unsuccessful attempts, he managed to open the closet. Looking down, his eyes widened at the sight, getting teary. There was his mother's corpse, laying lifeless in the closet. The source of the stench was coming from her.

Before Nemeris could think about anything else, his body collapsed on the floor. Perhaps he was too shocked to notice that he was holding his breath. Or rather he collapsed due to the shock. Who knows. Maybe it was the creature following him.

Fortunately, Nemeris didn't pass away. Or did he? As Nemeris sat up, he found his body laying on the floor in front of his lifeless mother. "What..is going on?" Nemeris muttered under his breath before standing up. He looked down and observed his body, it seemed as lifeless as his mother's.

"I..I died, didn't I?" Nemeris forced a chuckle, covering his face in his palm. He shoved both hands into his pockets, wandering around the house aimlessly. "I should visit Nanami, give her a scare," Nemeris lightly laughed, excusing the fact that he may be dead. "No. She won't see you either way," a voice spoke out. Nemeris quickly turned around but nothing nor anyone was there. "Where...are you?" Nemeris looked around, only to find himself in the house by himself. Or is he by himself?

"I'm probably imagining all this. This is all a dream. I hope," Nemeris continued to walk aimlessly, then reached the front door to open it. He placed his hand on the doorknob, about to twist it before a black hand grabbed his wrist from behind, stopping him from exiting the house.

Nemeris's eyes widened at the sight. The grip felt tight, so tight it could leave a red mark. He released his hand from the doorknob, the black hand retreating. Nemeris then looked behind him, but nobody was there. "This isn't funny. Just show yourself already," Nemeris spoke out loud, his tone had a hint of annoyance.

Still no reply. Getting angry, Nemeris reached for the doorknob, then a voice called out, "Fine, I'm here!"

Nemeris turned around, an eyebrow raised curiously as he looked the figure up and down. It seemed to look like a male traveler. "Why can't I exit this house?" Nemeris asked impatiently. "You can't leave. Otherwise, you won't have a chance to reincarnate," the male traveler explained. "Reincarnate? That's a thing? Well then, how do I 'reincarnate' like you say?"

"You stay in the same area you died in for the next 5 soul years. It'll show the reincarnation god that you're dedicated enough to reincarnate," the male traveler spoke in a nerdy tone. "So...you died here before?" Nemeris tilted his head curiously. "Yes. I've been a dedicated soul here for 2 years. My reason for death was because I didn't manage to dodge the creature in time," the male traveler explained.

"What creature? Don't tell me it's the 'creature' that killed my mother and watched me while I biked home," Nemeris chuckled, talking in a sarcastic tone. "Yes. That exact creature," the male traveler crossed his arms. Nemeris' grin quickly dropped, his eyes widening.

"Well, what's your name?" Nemeris asked, a bit stiff as he recollected himself. "It is forbidden to share personal information with another soul. Rather we can chit-chat but that is all," the male traveler uncrossed his arms as he sat down on the floor.

"If we share personal information, the creature will know how to disperse our remains. Our souls, consciousnesses, everything. Not even a single trace of you will be left," the male traveler rested his head on his hand, his elbow on his knee.

"How do you know all this..?" Nemeris asked, almost terrified of how knowledgeable this soul was. "Because, I am the creature's consciousness."