Alger lived deep within the city. With the constant haze of light and air pollution, the stars he could see were usually faint, blurry specks swallowed by the sky. But this one, this green star, was almost as bright as the moon.
"What the…?" he muttered.
He stood at his window, allured by the strange celestial glow.
He thought to himself that the view would be better from the road.
Without wasting a moment, Alger rushed down the stairs and stepped into the parking lot in front of his apartment. He looked up, his eyes were scanning the night sky. But the star... that green star... was gone.
Confused, he turned in place, trying to catch it from a different angle. But no matter where he looked, the sky remained starless, just dark and clouded like always. Alger shook his head, debating whether to brush it off and continue toward the convenience store.
But he couldn't stop thinking about it.
Ever since middle school, Alger had been fascinated by astronomy. He knew, without a doubt, that a star couldn't just appear out of nowhere... and disappear in less than a minute.
He looked around for someone... anyone.... he could ask if they had seen it too. But the streets, usually lively and packed with traffic, were... empty. No cars. No pedestrians. Not a single soul.
His heart quickened.
Something was off.
Still, he continued walking toward the convenience store with cautious urgency.
When he arrived, the automatic glass doors opened with a soft whoosh. But inside, the place was deserted. No cashier behind the counter. No customers. No quiet hum of voices or footsteps. Just... silence.
Alger stepped inside hesitantly.
"Hello?" he called out, but heard no response.
He turned to leave, but froze the moment he stepped outside.
A deep chill crawled down his spine. Something... someone... was watching him.
And whoever it was… felt dangerous.
The world around him seemed to dim, the shadows stretching just a little longer, the air growing heavier.
Alger backed away slowly, heart pounding.
He didn't know who... or what... was behind him, but every instinct screamed at him to run.
And so he did.
He sprinted home, the suffocating presence trailing him, growing ever closer.
By the time he reached the parking lot, he could feel it almost touching him.
He rushed up the stairs, taking them two at a time, he started to pant but knew he couldn't stop. He reached his floor, barely breathing, and looked for the key in his pocket.
But as he reached his door—
He stopped.
Not by choice.
He couldn't move.
He didn't even breathe.
The presence was right behind him now... close enough to feel its breath, if it had any.
A metallic whisper echoed behind him.
The sound of a sword being drawn.
Alger's eyes widened. He managed to glance down at his chest, just in time to see a pitch-black blade slowly pierce through him as if his body were made of paper.
Alger died.
***
Alger felt like his head was about to explode.
It was as if he'd just surfaced from underwater... His lungs were burning, his eyes were stinging, his vision was blurred. He tried to open his eyes and saw the hazy shape of a woman hovering above him.
It was hard to breathe, and his limbs were numb.
Am I alive...?
He tried to remember what happened.
The sword… the presence… I died, didn't I?
Wait... wasn't the Grim Reaper supposed to have a scythe?
Where the hell did the sword come from?
His thoughts were scattered. Disconnected. But when he looked down, he saw something that didn't belong.
A tiny hand.
His hand.
It was the hand of a newborn.
Did I… reincarnate?
The woman holding him looked panicked. Alger turned his head, struggling to move, and saw another woman desperately performing CPR on someone lying on a bed.
It dawned on him.
If he had reincarnated, then the woman lying lifeless on the bed…
That's my mother, isn't it?
Fate truly was cruel.
No parents in his last life. And now, none in this one either.
The two women in the room slowly gave up. They were speaking in a language Alger didn't recognize... nothing from Earth. The words were foreign, rhythmic, maybe even magical.
Alger wanted to stay awake, to understand what was happening, but the strain of existing... of breathing... was too much.
His eyes fluttered shut, and he drifted into sleep.
***
When Alger woke again, he was in motion.
He was being carried... cradled in the arms of the woman who had tried to save his mother. They were inside some kind of vehicle. He glanced around, struggling to make sense of the cramped, shaking space.
A carriage?
No way. Who uses carriages in this day and age?
Oh God... no. Don't tell me I reincarnated into the past.
Please, not a time without toilet paper!
Outside, the world rolled by. He couldn't see much from how low he was being held, but eventually, the carriage stopped.
The nurse stepped out, and they were met by a tall, silver-haired man who looked to be in his thirties. He looked Dignified and Cold.
The woman and the man spoke, but Alger couldn't understand a word.
Is that... the father? He wondered.
But quickly dismissed the thought. If that man were the father, he would have been there for the birth. More likely, the real father was dead. Or maybe missing.
Soon, the woman handed Alger to someone else, a woman dressed in black and white.
A maid? Alger guessed.
She carried him inside a large building filled with children. Too many to be a home.
An orphanage…?
Yeah. It has to be.
The maid walked through corridors, stopping every so often to show the newborn to curious four-year-olds who poked and prodded at Alger's tiny body. He scowled internally.
Eventually, they arrived at a dark room with four cradles. Two were already occupied by sleeping infants.
The maid gently placed him in the third.
She then walked over to a nearby table, picked up a lamp, and placed a finger on one of the stones inside it.
A spark ignited.
The lamp started to glow... soft, steady, and magical.
Alger's eyes widened.
Magic!