(A new book is here! The goal is to break six points in the reviews. The author's still a rookie, so please give me your guidance.)
(A brain-deposit box. The author will take good care of everyone's brains.)
(The author is just a boring person who wrote a boring novel.)
(This time, I came prepared. If you like it, read it; if you don't, toss it aside and leave _(??ω?? "∠)_)
At dusk on the Blue Star, the sky was painted a warm orange-red.
Lin Mu carried a freshly bought bag of strawberry cream puffs and mango mille-crepe cake in one hand, while scrolling on his phone with the other. An Alpenliebe lollipop dangled from his mouth.
(Durian smells too strong, so I always eat mango mille-crepe cake.)
A clip from The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. was playing on the screen.
The protagonist, Saiki Kusuo, was a pink-haired psychic. At that moment, he was secretly using Psychokinesis to move a coffee jelly closer to himself.
(Coffee pudding—they're more or less the same. By the way, double-skin milk is delicious too.)
"Tsk, if this power were real, the first thing I'd do is take all the good stuff from every dessert shop in the city."
(No, it isn't.)
Lin Mu muttered indistinctly, rolling the candy to the left side of his mouth.
The evening breeze carried the aroma of freshly baked croissants from the bakery on the street, mingled with the grassy scent unique to early summer, and brushed across his cheek.
(Croissants are delicious.)
He turned the corner and stepped onto the steel-and-concrete bridge spanning the river.
Traffic flowed beneath the bridge, and the water shimmered with ripples.
(The clear water is really soothing.)
"Mom—!"
A piercing cry shattered the peace of the evening.
Lin Mu looked up, his pupils contracting.
Beside the bridge railing, a little girl of about five or six waved her arms in panic. Her foot slipped, and she toppled backward.
Her mother screamed and reached for her, but only managed to grab a scrap of her clothing.
Splash!
Water shot high into the air.
Lin Mu didn't hesitate for a moment—not even for a single second.
(A lesson in idealism: it turned the real me into an adult who had lost so much.)
Lin Mu hung the bag of desserts on the railing, yanked off his jacket and threw it on the ground, spat the lollipop stick to the side, vaulted over the railing, and leaped down.
(I really admire people who step up to help others. I used to be like that too, but reality made me cold.)
As he fell, one thought flashed through his mind: This river's pretty deep. Good thing I never skipped swimming lessons.
(I always bring a swim ring when I go swimming. I'm a landlubber, sob.)
The icy river water enveloped him in an instant.
He opened his eyes and saw the little girl struggling in the water.
Lin Mu kicked hard and swam to her in a few strokes. He wrapped an arm around her waist from behind and swam upward.
When they broke the surface, a small crowd had already gathered on the bank.
He helped the child onto shore. Her mother rushed over and hugged her soaking-wet daughter, crying incoherently. "Thank you... Thank you so much... I didn't know what to do..."
"It's okay." Lin Mu wiped the water from his face and accepted a towel from a kind bystander. "Be more careful next time."
He put on his jacket and picked up the bag of desserts—the packaging was somehow still intact.
(Ironically, the rescuer's stuff could've...)
He waved away the praise and questions around him and turned to leave.
He'd walked a dozen steps before remembering that he shouldn't have spat out his lollipop just to look cool.
"What a waste," he muttered. "It was an Alpenliebe milk-flavored one, too."
(What flavors do you all like?)
He hadn't gone far when an unusual light suddenly shone in the sky.
Lin Mu looked up and saw a dazzling meteor streak across the darkening sky. Its path was far too straight to be natural.
It grew brighter and brighter, and came closer and closer—
"Aw, hell." That was his last clear thought before he lost consciousness.
(You talk like such a gearhead...)
"Do I really get hit by a meteor after doing a good deed? Where's the justice in that, God? If this keeps happening, who'll ever do good deeds again?"
He didn't get to finish his rant.
Scorching white light swallowed everything.
When he opened his eyes again, it took Lin Mu several minutes to realize what had happened.
He had been reincarnated.
In a parallel world, in Tokyo, at an orphanage called Sunshine Home. His body had become that of a child, and his new name was Linmu Fujimiya.
(Watch out, he's about to transform into Agul.)
He had retained all his memories from his previous life, including the absurd way it had ended—with a meteor hitting him.
But that wasn't the point.
The point was that one day, as he stared at the cherry tree in the yard and thought, It'd be beautiful if all the petals fell at once—
Every blossom on the tree fell in an instant, like a shower of pink snow.
He stood there stunned for a full five minutes.
(Brain reboot. Reboot failed...)
Then he tried a second thing: he stared at the cup on the table in the distance and thought, Come here.
The cup floated up and flew steadily into his hand.
Third, he wondered what the caretaker in the next room was thinking.
A voice burrowed directly into his mind: Should I make curry or hamburger steak for dinner? The kids seem to like hamburger steak more...
Linmu Fujimiya—well, that was his name now—sat on the edge of his bed, holding the cup. His expression shifted from shock to confusion, then to irrepressible delight.
It seemed his powers were the complete ability set of Saiki Kusuo.
Telepathy, Psychokinesis, teleportation, x-ray vision, precognition, matter transformation...
(I've gone straight into cheat mode. No skill required, just stats and mechanics.)
Over the next week, he secretly tested his powers and confirmed it.
He also discovered that using his abilities consumed his inner energy, while eating sugar restored it quickly.
(That's a limitation, I guess.)
The energy cost wasn't all that high, but he liked the feeling of being at "full power."
(Keeping my phone at 100%.)
From then on, he always kept candy in his pocket.
Using his powers, he quietly paved the way for his future:
He altered a few documents, influenced the decisions of several key people, and put on a show of working hard at his studies.
Four years later, an acceptance letter from Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School arrived at the orphanage.
"Advanced Nurturing High School..." Linmu Fujimiya stared at the school's name on the envelope and frowned.
It sounded familiar, but he couldn't remember why. He had watched some anime in his previous life, but his memories had grown hazy, leaving only a few scattered fragments.
"Whatever."
He tossed the letter onto the table and unwrapped another lollipop. "With powers like these, where can't I slack off?"
Slacking off. That was the new goal he had set for himself.
He'd worked hard enough in his previous life. With psychic powers this time around, not lying back and enjoying life would be an insult to the meteor that had killed him.
Powers? He'd avoid using them if he could. Who knew what else might exist in this world?
What if he ran into trouble? First, he'd dodge it if he could. If he couldn't, then he'd have no choice but to give up beef.
Live quietly, sketch a few romance illustrations he liked in secret (for women, so he'd better keep them hidden), and make desserts to satisfy his cravings—that was the perfect life.
As for what was special about this school?
He'd deal with that when the time came.
The first day of school arrived.
Linmu Fujimiya stood at the bus stop wearing the standard uniform of Advanced Nurturing High School—a dark red blazer, a white shirt, and brown trousers.
Before you continue