"...The fuck."
A soft murmur escaped the young man's lips as he gazed at the broken mirror in front of him.
Huh?
Dim black eyes stared back at him, and his black hair was tousled over his head.
His gaze trembled looking at the blood seeping from his forehead.
A thin crimson line of blood trailed down from a cut just above his brow, slipping over his eyebrow and dripping onto the already broken sink below.
Realizing the pain, he clutched his head and took a step back "Ugh..."
His back hit the wall, and he closed his eyes tightly.
'Where am I?'
Steadying his breath, he blinked and slowly opened his eyes.
Glancing around at the dim room and the broken sink drenched with blood, he realized that he was in the bathroom.
"Shit- it hurts..."
At this time, a stream of memories flowed into his mind, and he winced in pain "Klein... Herssen?"
The name felt foreign on his lips, yet familiar inside his mind, like a memory he had never lived but somehow knew belonged to him.
Images, voices, and sensations flooded his head all at once.
As the memories of the body flowed into his mind, he clutched his head "W-What?"
Suddenly he heard footsteps coming close to the bathroom, and he frowned in confusion.
"Klein?"
Hearing a woman's voice from the other side, he panicked and instinctively muttered "Big Sister?"
"Klein, what are you doing there? I heard a loud noise just now."
Huh? Looking at the broken sink and mirror, he hurriedly replied "N-Nothing Big Sister, I just fell down..."
After a moment of silence, he heard her voice again, but it was low and timid "Klein... are you trying to k-kill yourself again?"
Kill myself?
He quickly replied "No, no, Big Sister... it's nothing like that. I just slipped and fell down."
There was another silence on the other side, and Klein clutched his head, feeling the throbbing pain.
"…Klein," she finally whispered in a shaky voice, "don't do this to me again."
Upon hearing this, his gaze trembled and a pang of guilt seeped into his heart for this 'unknown woman.'
"I said I'm fine," he muttered in a softer voice this time.
"Fine? You said that last week and I found you unconscious on the rooftop."
He blinked.
Rooftop?
More fragmented memories trickled in... cold wind, shaky footing, blurry vision, and an overwhelming sense of ending.
Klein's stomach twisted "I'm not trying to-"
But she cut him off "I'm coming in."
Huh? He panicked and quickly went to the door "No, wait-"
Before he could react, the bathroom door creaked open.
A young woman with long black hair stepped inside, wearing an oversized sweater and her hair messy as if she had rushed over without thinking.
She looked around at the scene and noticed the broken mirror, the sink, and the blood.
"…Klein."
She approached him slowly and Klein instinctively pressed himself against the wall.
Raising her hand, she reached out tentatively.
"Let me see," she murmured.
He didn't resist.
Her fingers were gentle as she brushed the messy strands of hair away from the cut on his forehead.
Her brows knitted together, her lips pressing into a thin line "You're bleeding so much..."
He didn't know what to say... so he said nothing.
Her fingers hesitated for a moment as if debating whether to scold him or hug him... but instead, she let out a quiet breath and gently took his wrist.
"Come with me."
Klein didn't resist as she guided him out of the room and down a short hallway dimly lit by a single wall lamp.
Every few steps, she glanced back, making sure he was still following and not swaying from blood loss.
The apartment wasn't large. A small living room, a narrow corridor, his room, and then her bedroom.
She pushed the door open with her shoulder and led him inside.
Carefully, she guided him to sit on the bed.
"Stay still."
Klein nodded wordlessly.
She moved to a shelf near the window where there was a small wooden rack stacked with books, folded scarves, and a few glass vials filled with vibrant liquids.
After looking through it for a moment, she picked up a small green vial stoppered with a silver cork.
She held out the vial to him "Drink this. It's a low-grade healing potion. It should stop the bleeding and help with the dizziness."
Klein hesitated, staring at the small container glowing faintly under the lamplight.
He frowned '…Potions. Healing potions. Those exist here.'
The memories swirling in his mind finally aligned with the world around him... magic, alchemy, monsters.
A world he recognized.
Because he had played it.
Taking the vial from her hands, he raised it to his lips and took a sip.
The liquid was slightly sweet with a metallic aftertaste, and as it slid down his throat, a faint tingling spread beneath his skin.
The throbbing pain on his forehead began to dull, and the dizziness faded little by little.
His sister watched him closely, and once the vial was empty, she exhaled in relief "Good… you're responding to it."
She took the empty container and set it aside on the nightstand.
Klein closed his eyes for a moment to digest the information 'No doubt about it...'
'From the memories of the body's owner, I have been transmigrated into this fuckass game...'
'But why... and how? I remember dozing off while playing the game and then I woke up here.'
His big sister just stood there and watched him, not wanting to disturb him, seeing that he was thinking about something.
She gently sat beside him on the bed.
Feeling a dip of mattress beside him, he opened his eyes and glanced at her 'This is 'my' big sister; her name is Claire Herseen.'
She wasn't breathtaking in a glamorous way, but she had a quiet beauty.
She fiddled with the corner of her sleeve nervously before speaking.
"…Does it still hurt?" she asked softly.
Klein swallowed, forcing his racing thoughts to settle "No, It's… better now."
Relief washed across her face, and her shoulders dropped just a little, "That's good."
Another little awkward silence followed.
However, Klein's mind is still restless 'Transmigrated...'
He had played this game hundreds of times, rage quitting, restarting, memorizing routes, endings, item placements, character flags, and hidden death triggers.
And this body, Klein Herssen, is not the protagonist.
He doesn't know the 'Klein' in the game, but he knows Claire.
He glanced at her for a moment 'She is a side character who gets transferred to the 'Grayhaven Academy' during her third year.'
'In the game, she was shown as a tragic character who lost her brother and never recovered from it.'
'She is a broken genius who bottles her grief, quietly becoming the "Ice Beast" everyone is afraid to speak to.'
'Then the protagonist shows up, notices her, triggers her hidden route, and she either lives… or shatters completely on the bad ending and kills herself.'
'I even remember crying to see her tragic ending...'
Which was why…
His gaze softened unconsciously as he looked at her.
Claire noticed his soft gaze and was confused "...What is it?"