Chapter 1
The First World Is Always the Worst
Neychan was good at making people laugh.
Not the loud, center-stage kind of laughter that demanded applause, but the softer kind—the kind that slipped out when someone wasn't paying attention and surprised even themselves.
He learned that skill in the circus.
It wasn't a grand circus with roaring crowds and glittering lights. It was small, traveling, and perpetually one bad week away from shutting down. The tents were patched more times than anyone cared to count, and the performers doubled as stagehands, ticket sellers, and janitors. But when the music started and the children gathered, none of that mattered.
Neychan painted his face white, drew a crooked smile, and exaggerated every movement like the world was watching—even when it wasn't.
The kids laughed.
Parents smiled tiredly.
For a little while, everyone forgot whatever heaviness they carried in with them.
That was enough for him.
He never talked much about himself. When people asked, he joked it away. When silence crept in, he filled it with antics. He didn't mind being overlooked as long as someone else felt lighter because of him.
At night, when the circus packed up and the laughter faded, Neychan returned to his small rented room. It was quiet there. Too quiet. He'd sometimes put on music just to pretend someone else was around.
On weekends, he dressed up as a clown at family gatherings—not because they asked, but because he liked seeing them laugh without worrying about him.
Loneliness was easier to carry when it was wrapped in humor.
That night felt no different.
He came home tired, makeup already scrubbed off, shoes kicked aside near the door. His room looked the same as always: narrow bed, small desk, one chair, a door that led nowhere interesting.
Except—
There was a key on the desk.
Neychan stopped.
"…Huh."
It wasn't his.
It was old, metallic, and heavier than it looked. No tag. No note. Just sitting there like it had always belonged.
He checked his pockets. His bag. Under the bed.
Nothing.
Someone must've dropped it? Maybe the landlord? Maybe—
He shrugged.
"Free key," he muttered, holding it up. "Hope it's not cursed."
He laughed at his own joke and walked to the door. Just to see. Just for fun.
The key slid in smoothly.
The lock turned.
The door opened.
And the world ended.
—or at least, that's what it felt like.
Cold air rushed in. Not hallway air. Not night air. Something alive. The scent of damp earth and pine slammed into him as the floor vanished beneath his feet.
Neychan stumbled forward and fell face-first into grass.
"—Ow!"
He rolled onto his back, groaning. The ceiling was gone. The walls were gone. Above him stretched a sky too wide and too blue to be indoors.
Trees surrounded him. Tall, crooked things with bark like twisted scars. A forest. Endless.
"…Okay," he said weakly. "That's new."
He scrambled up, heart pounding, hands shaking. The door was gone. The room was gone. Just grass, wind, and silence.
Then something growled.
It wasn't the kind of growl you heard in movies. It was wet. Wrong. Like something trying very hard to sound threatening without understanding how.
Branches snapped.
Leaves trembled.
Something large moved between the trees.
Neychan didn't wait to see it.
He screamed.
Not a heroic scream. Not a dignified one. It came out high-pitched and panicked and completely unflattering.
"NOPE NOPE NOPE—!"
He ran.
His legs burned almost immediately. He wasn't athletic. He wasn't trained. He was a clown who tripped on purpose for a living. Roots grabbed at his feet. Branches slapped his face.
Behind him—
A shriek.
The monster burst into view.
It was horrifying.
And slightly ridiculous.
Too many legs. Not enough symmetry. A head shaped wrong, with eyes that blinked independently and a mouth that opened sideways like it hadn't read the manual on anatomy. Its roar cracked halfway through, ending in a squeak that sounded embarrassingly close to a kettle boiling over.
That did not make it less terrifying.
"I DON'T BELONG HERE—!" Neychan yelled, vaulting over a fallen log and immediately tripping over the landing.
He rolled down a slope, arms flailing, dirt in his mouth.
I'm going to die. I'm actually going to die. I just wanted to go home.
The monster skidded to a stop at the top of the hill, confused, staring down at him like it hadn't expected him to fall that far.
They stared at each other.
Neychan slowly raised a hand.
"…Hi?"
The monster hissed.
He screamed again and bolted.
By some miracle—pure, stupid luck—the forest thinned. Neychan burst out onto a grassy hill overlooking a wide valley bathed in sunset light. He collapsed, lungs screaming, body trembling.
Minutes passed.
No monster.
No growling.
Just wind.
He laughed. A shaky, hysterical sound that broke halfway into something close to crying.
"I'm alive," he said. "I'm alive. That's—good. That's good."
He sat up slowly and looked around.
That's when it hit him.
This wasn't near his house.
This wasn't anywhere near anything he knew.
He pulled the key from his pocket with trembling fingers and tried to use it on the air.
Nothing happened.
"Okay," he whispered. "Okay, okay, okay…"
Something smacked him on the head.
"Ow!"
A book landed in the grass beside him.
Neychan stared at it.
There were no trees above him. No birds. No cliffs.
"…Did that fall from the sky?"
He picked it up. The cover was plain. No title. No author.
The book opened on its own.
The words rearranged themselves as he read.
WELCOME, TRAVELER.
YOU MAY NOT LEAVE THIS WORLD UNTIL ITS CONDITION IS FULFILLED.
THE CONDITION WILL NOT BE DISCLOSED.
COMPLETION WILL GRANT A GIFT.
FAILURE WILL RESULT IN DEATH.
He blinked.
"…That's rude."
He flipped the page.
Nothing else.
No instructions. No explanation. No mercy.
Neychan closed the book and looked out at the unfamiliar world stretching endlessly before him.
He laughed again. Softer this time.
"Well," he said, standing up on shaky legs, "guess I'll just… walk?"
He picked a direction at random and started moving.
Not because he had a plan.
Not because he was brave.
But because standing still had never helped him before.
And somewhere deep down, beneath the jokes and the fear, a quiet thought echoed:
If I can make it through this… maybe I can make someone laugh again.
The forest watched.
The world waited.
And Neychan took his first step into infinity.