Strange Man

I drove it into the floor-to-ceiling window!

With a sharp CRASH!, the huge pane fell victim to my hand. Glass shattered with a tremendous clatter,

and shards scattered across the floor. At the same time, a breeze pushed aside the curtain blocking my view, revealing

the furnishings inside.

There was no one there, just ordinary furnishings. But they were all high-end. Even at a hurried

glance, they left an impression on me.

What interested me most was the thing mounted on the wall...

"A holographic projection system!"

Supposedly, it made watching movies feel like you were right there in the scene. Cinemas in some major cities

had started using the equipment

to draw in audiences.

Of course, I'd only read about it online. A setup like this cost over a million. How could an ordinary family

afford it? And that wasn't even counting

the other equipment, accessories for the holographic projection system like headsets and gloves.

But something so famous in the past was nothing more than a pile of scrap now. Without electricity,

all this stuff was just something pretty

to look at, nothing more.

I pulled the curtain aside, letting sunlight into the room and giving me a clear look at everything.

It seemed to be an exercise room, filled with workout equipment. It really brought that saying to mind...

"The richer people are, the more they value their lives."

The Strange Man

I made the idle joke and stepped inside, pulling open the rest of the curtains behind me. There had to be at least a dozen kinds of

equipment in the room, each one

expensive. There was even a punching bag hanging in the middle.

I walked over and felt the bag. It was remarkably soft, but it had weight to it. Suddenly itching

to try my hand, I clenched my fist and drove it hard

into the bag!

BANG!!!

To my disbelief, a punch delivered with almost all my strength nearly sent the bag flying.

I sidestepped the bag as it swung back, then instinctively looked down at my fist. Even I couldn't

believe those slender fingers

could produce so much force.

But it had happened. The bag still swinging back and forth proved it hadn't been an illusion.

"What... what happened to my body?"

At a loss, I drifted toward the door. I put my hand on the knob and turned it gently. It moved

without resistance, and I opened the door.

But while I stood there in a daze, a pair of eyes made me jump out of my skin!!

"Who's there?!"

I instinctively raised my combat knife and stared at the pair of eyes in the shadowy corner ahead. Standing

in the sunlight, I couldn't make out

what was there, but I could clearly see those eyes reflecting a faint glimmer as they watched me!!

Was it a Zombie?! A person? Or a monster?!

Countless possibilities raced through my mind. But after seven or eight seconds, whatever

it was still hadn't moved.

As the seconds passed, I gradually calmed down. My eyes adjusted to the darkness as I watched

the corner. When I finally made out

what it was, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry...

It was a mannequin sitting on a cabinet against the wall. Its eyes looked almost human, and by sheer chance they were pointed

straight at me. They were at just about

the height of a person standing five and a half feet tall, too. No wonder I'd mistaken it for someone.

I let out a huge breath and was about to move when a man's voice suddenly came from my left.

"Hello."

If the voice hadn't come from far enough away, I would have stabbed at him with my combat knife the instant he spoke!

For a moment, it felt like my heart had stopped. The guy had nearly scared me to death!!

But... there really was someone alive here?!

I leaned out and looked left. A person was slowly coming down the spiral staircase.

It was a man with short, tousled hair. His face was pale, but he was clearly alive.

He was decent-looking, dressed in comfortable casual clothes with slippers on his feet.

"Are you a survivor?"

The man came down the stairs and looked my way.

I nodded and glanced around without speaking. The owner of the villa was still home, and I had broken in

like a thief who suddenly discovered

someone was home.

How awkward was that?

"Are you a soldier?"

The man walked over slowly, and I got a proper look at him. He was fairly handsome, with thin lips and a high-bridged nose.

He looked a little malnourished,

but he seemed full of energy. His eyes kept roaming over me as if he'd found a lifeline.

I shook my head. "No."

His head drooped at once, and the light went out of his eyes. But when he raised his head to look at me

again, for some reason I suddenly found

his gaze revolting... Was I imagining it?

"A girl like you managed to survive out there..." the man said in surprise. Then he waved for me

to follow him upstairs and added,

"Close the door. Don't let those things in."

I pulled the exercise room door shut behind me, plunging the place into darkness again. Still, by the light

coming through the gaps in the curtains, I could

make out his figure clearly.

He was a pretty boy, though he wasn't very tall. Five foot seven at most, I guessed.

That made me a little suspicious. But after thinking it over, I decided I was probably overthinking things

and pushed the thought aside

as I followed him upstairs.

As I climbed, though, I noticed that his trousers seemed a little too long, and his shirt

looked slightly too big as well.

Did this man like wearing baggy clothes? He was even stepping on the hems of his trousers...

Lost in thought, I followed him upstairs. The moment I reached the second floor, a strange smell made me

frown.

"Sorry about the shabby place," the man said.

He glanced at me as if weighing something. After a moment's hesitation, he went to the balcony

and pulled the curtains open.

The sudden sunlight made me squeeze my eyes shut. Once I'd adjusted and opened them again, I saw the man

walk over to the sofa and sit down.

"Have a seat."

"Uh... okay."

I didn't quite know what to do. This man was acting so strangely.

But... what exactly was wrong?

The man watched me for a moment, then suddenly raised a finger. "Wait here. I'll get something." Before

I could react, he hurried

into a nearby room. A little while later, he returned carrying a wooden box.

Clack.

He set a rectangular wooden box in front of me.

"What's this...?"

I looked up and asked. The man smiled. "Nothing much. A bottle of red wine, to celebrate. I haven't

seen another living person in a month."

He went to a cabinet nearby and opened a drawer. As he rummaged through it, he muttered, "Strange...

I thought the corkscrew was

in here..."

Looking past his back, I spotted something on top of the cabinet and pointed. "Isn't that it?"

The man turned toward my voice, looked at me, then followed my finger. There,

on top of the cabinet against the wall, sat

a metal corkscrew.

"So that's where it was..." He reached up to take it, but he didn't seem tall

enough. The corkscrew was on top of a cabinet nearly six feet tall. He stretched for it again and again, but couldn't reach. Finally, he jumped