A Young Boy, Full of Troubles

Warning: this book contains the following:

1. Unclear worldbuilding. Just treat it as a parallel world.

2. Mental confusion. Just assume the author wrote it half-asleep.

3. Madmanification. It must be contamination from magnetic field power.

4. It doesn't stand up to scrutiny. A novice author with elementary-school prose.

5. It's not good.

You can leave your brain here. Bringing it along to read is fine too... probably.

At night, inside a cramped rental room in the city, the walls had already begun to peel, and the painted iron door dated back decades. A laptop sat on a small desk, notification sounds coming from it now and then. Beneath the dim light, water dripped from the air conditioner with a steady drip, drip. At the far end of the room, an exceptionally handsome boy lay on his bed, reading a comic.

Below the bed were a kettle boiling water and a tangle of electrical cords. A cat nimbly jumped onto the boy and planted both feet on his comic.

Bai Mo: "Gwah! Bozai, why would you do this to me?!"

The boy let out a strange cry, but the cat he called Bozai felt no remorse whatsoever for his actions. First of all, I, Bozai, am a cat. Second, this kitty is hungry.

Bai Mo: "All right, all right. I didn't realize it was so late."

Bai Mo got out of bed, poured cat food into Bozai's bowl, and put it on the desk. Then he turned and took a packet of instant noodles and a ham sausage from the wardrobe beside the desk, tore open the packaging, and began preparing the noodles.

Bai Mo: "Bozai, once I get next month's pay, I'll get you an automatic feeder. Then could you stop interrupting me when I'm reading comics? It's the one little hobby I have."

Bozai: "Meow~"

Bai Mo had once had a reasonably happy family, but his father's affair and business failure had shoved that family into the reincarnation pool. Still in middle school at the time, Bai Mo had been given a choice: live with his mother, who didn't love him and had changed his school preferences without his permission, and be ordered around like a dog from then on; or stay with his cheating father and live with that woman who had never once looked him in the eye. Either way, continuing school was out of the question.

But as a boy who had grown up reading Hong Kong comics and was already heavily madmanified, Bai Mo had resolutely chosen to take charge of his own destiny.

Thinking about it now, it seemed to amount to working himself to death to secure a tiny room in this city as a place to shelter, living in poverty every day. Yet even so, Bai Mo had brought a stray cat home.

Bozai was now the last family Bai Mo had in this world.

Looking over this week's bills, it seemed Bozai's expenses were even higher than his own. Bai Mo shook his head helplessly. His life seemed to be getting harder and harder.

Another message arrived. Bai Mo glanced at it, then picked up his phone and prepared to leave. It was the guy urging him to come to his nighttime job. After pouring water for Bozai, Bai Mo left the room.

Riding a shared bicycle, Bai Mo made his way through the city at night, past its multicolored neon lights. For no apparent reason, a sense of loneliness came over him. Cool threads fell onto his face.

Bai Mo: "Huh? Is it raining? Crap, I didn't bring an umbrella."

He looked up. The fine drizzle draped a hazy veil over the city, making it even more beautiful. Since coming here, Bai Mo had never taken a proper look at the city's nightscape, and with that chance glance upward, he saw it. It was so beautiful.

But he shouldn't have looked up now. He shouldn't have stopped, because an out-of-control truck was hurtling toward him.

A burst of excruciating pain, and Bai Mo lost consciousness.

If only I were like those powerhouses in Sea Tiger. If I had power, I wouldn't have to fight so hard every day just to survive. If I had power, I could blast this tiny truck apart with one hand! Unfortunately, there were no ifs in this world.

Everything was pitch-black. Bai Mo was here, with nothing around him except a faint voice... It seems to be calling my name.

"Bai Mo... Bai Mo."

Bai Mo: "Who?"

Then Bai Mo heard a ding.

Bai Mo: "No way. Don't tell me you're one of those systems from cheap novels. I mean, I'm already dead. What's the point of showing up now?"

System: "Yes, I am your system. Host Bai Mo, you are now dead, but this system can help you be reborn in another world. Would you like to be reborn?"

Bai Mo: "No."

System: "Ding, initiating rebirth... what?"

Bai Mo: "Buddy, I've been working three jobs a day for almost a year now. Honestly, I'm really kind of tired. How about we just leave it at that? Just let me die, man."

Yes, Bai Mo felt tired. Very, very tired. More importantly? What reason did he have to keep living? He had no lover, and to his family, he was nothing but a burden. If he had to say it, he deeply resented what his mother had done to him, but Bai Mo had always told himself to consider the mistreatment repayment for raising him. He had to think that way, or if he remained immersed in hatred, his life would probably become even worse.

Bai Mo: "All right. I feel bad that you came all this way for nothing, but I'm sorry. Let me die."

Bai Mo pressed his palms together, looking deeply apologetic toward the system, and that left the system silent.

System: "No, you fucking bastard, you can't do this... you can't!"

Bai Mo: "?"

For some reason, Bai Mo felt that this system seemed a little less than proper.

System: "Ding, please do not make things difficult for this system, host. You are this system's best match. If you give up, this system will self-destruct."

Bai Mo: "Huh? Whoever designed you was that heartless? But I really don't want to do this anymore."

The system fell silent, seemingly thinking and weighing its options.

System: "Host, the system can help you temporarily regain your life. After all, your former life could hardly be called fulfilling. How about it? The system can give you some power to take revenge on those people you hate."

All at once, numerous screens of light appeared in the pitch-black world. They showed his mother, his father who lived off a woman, the boss who was cursing him under his breath, and many, many other people. A flood of memories surged into Bai Mo's heart, accompanied by emotion, an inexplicable indignation.

Bai Mo: "That's right. There are still some things I haven't done. Fine, I accept."

System: "Ding, the time limit is three hours. During this time, the host can possess immense power. Please finish as soon as possible."

Bai Mo: "All right, then..."

Bai Mo opened his eyes. His body began reassembling itself in a bizarre fashion, and before long, he stood upon the earth once more. At the end of his life, with three hours of a god's power, what would Bai Mo do now? Would he go and slaughter those who despised him, those scum who disgusted him?

Bai Mo did not do that. He went to a bank and withdrew all his savings. He returned home, buying a deluxe fried rice on the way that he would ordinarily buy only on payday, then reduced his phone to powder.

Bai Mo: "What terrifying power. I'd better be careful."

Bai Mo was now like a giant walking through the city. His every movement could spell doom for these "ants" living in their "anthill," yet he remained exceedingly careful. Fuck, this guy was already about to die. Why not cut loose a little?

Because he was not someone who disregarded life. Having lived at the bottom, Bai Mo knew that the people out at this hour were all working hard to make a living. He had no future left, but he couldn't destroy theirs.

Back home, Bai Mo once again filled Bozai's bowl with cat food. This time, there was so very much of it, too much for the bowl to hold, so much that Bozai didn't dare eat.

Bai Mo: "Eat, Bozai. Think of it as our last meal together. Don't spoil it for me."

No matter what Bai Mo said, Bozai still couldn't understand. Kitties couldn't understand human speech. But Bozai could sense that this might be the last time his owner fed him. Bai Mo had brought him into this home, ending his days as a stray. This had been the happiest time of Bozai's life. As for Bai Mo, he simply kept his head down and ate until he had finished every last grain of rice.

Seeing that Bozai hadn't touched his bowl, Bai Mo simply picked him up carefully, then packed up all the cat supplies. Before long, Bai Mo arrived at a cat café. Leaving a note, he stroked Bozai's head like that. Bozai loved the feeling and gradually fell asleep.

Just like that, Bozai drifted into dreams beneath his owner's touch. The note said that he did not have long to live and hoped the cat café could take Bozai in. Finally, Bai Mo felt his body slowly dissolving, beginning with his legs and spreading upward, crumbling into fragments like a dying powerhouse in Sea Tiger.

Bai Mo: "Ha, I didn't think I'd get this kind of treatment too. I guess that's one dream fulfilled. Thank you."

As his words faded, the person called Bai Mo ceased to exist in this world entirely.

Bozai opened his eyes, just a moment before Bai Mo died. His owner's scent was still in the air. Where did my owner go? Is this our new home? Why did he shut me outside?

Soon, Bozai wanted to search for traces of him, but a hand caught him by the scruff of fate.

It was a strange person, wearing clothes that would definitely have drawn attention in this world, yet no one noticed him at all.

"Sleep, little one. This is as far as your owner can stay with you. Tomorrow, you'll have to get used to life without him."

Bozai froze. This guy is clearly speaking human language, so why... why can a cat like me understand him? So sleepy... what's going on...?

The cat who had lost his home remained at the entrance to the cat café. Someone would carry him inside tomorrow. Hopefully, he wouldn't do anything foolish again. The mysterious man looked up at the sky and murmured, "Bai Mo, was it? An interesting fellow. Perhaps it was right, but I still can't let my guard down."

The mysterious person left, as though he had never been there.