Chapter 73

When daylight came, a nameless kid woke up. In the corner of the kitchen, on top of a blanket, they woke up looking super confused, which was hilariously awkward.

The good thing about this body now is that I see people not by their looks but as radiators. It’s not about appearance—it’s all about warmth. Like, why buy a pretty radiator that’s cheap but isn’t actually warm? That’d just be wasteful, right?

Wait… Is something weird here?

From the faded memories of the guy with dimmed light, there’s a highlighted part saying this kid isn’t human. There doesn’t seem to be anything you could call a personality, but sometimes in the middle of the night, flashes of dark history pop into my head like kicking off the blanket, bringing back old memories.

I don’t know if it’s early signs of schizophrenia or if this is normal, but it doesn’t really matter, does it?

The real problem is food. Based on the current stock, if I ration it, it’ll last three days. But considering feeding this kid, we’ll probably finish everything by tomorrow. Considering how damp and unpleasant it gets around here thanks to Mr. Qi-user, it might take a few days before more food comes our way.

If it were just me, I could wait it out no problem. But for some reason, sending this kid off to die seems likely. They’re testing how I act, aren’t they? So, I’m gonna do nothing for this kid.

Most importantly, it’s common sense to handle borrowed things carefully, right? No reckless modifications allowed.

“Now that you’re awake, go wash up.”

I pointed at a jar tucked away in the kitchen corner. Originally, it had some murky water with bugs floating in it, but I twisted reality so it’s now full of clean water. If the object doesn’t fit the era, cracks appear, but if it’s natural, there are no cracks when pulling it into this world.

Though, I tried dragging in unlimited water once and got cracks, so I stopped quickly. The world’s kinda fragile, ya know? Anyway, I’m being careful not to break the glass bottle while changing what I can.

That the kid woke up on a blanket instead of a bare stone floor is also an experiment result. This blanket was originally a rotten one inside the room, but tweaking broken objects causes less cracking than creating entirely new ones. Creating something from scratch puts more pressure on the glass wall compared to modifying existing stuff.

One downside: living things shouldn’t be twisted. Not only does it put immense pressure on the glass wall, but bodies tear apart strangely, turning pixelated and disappearing like corrupted textures in 3D games.

Could this be an attack technique if used on humans? Nah, probably too risky; the glass wall would shatter first…

While pondering this, the kid scoops up a little water in a nearby bowl and washes their face. Despite being in a karst landscape with pillar-like rocks surrounded by water, it feels like there’s plenty of water around.

Today, I have loads of free time—actually, this is the first time since taking over someone else’s body that I’ve had such leisure. Back when I was stuck with Rebecca Rolfe, I was practically imprisoned. Now, exploring somewhere new using my own legs feels fresh, even though back then I did pace around a fixed space.

This time, I should explore curiosities. While planning my schedule, I made yesterday’s leftovers with slightly more water added. Oh no! Burnt a bit. Guess I’ll eat the burnt parts; cooking’s hard.

“Alright, come eat.”

During cooking, the kid stared at me intently. When I served them food, they looked at me with a subtle expression. Why?

Is this a judgmental look at my attempt at “cooking”? Can’t help it—I have tons of cooking memories but completely different ingredients. It’s trial and error, and things either turn out too thick or burnt. Cooking’s tough.

Not faded memories this time, but recent ones resurfaced briefly—Joanna Smith. She was someone who used to make food, so her memory popped up then faded. That must be why. But she’s not here anymore, is she?

She’s already dead, after all. This kid will die someday too.

Thinking about that, I fed them and cleaned the kitchen thoroughly. When the kid fidgeted, I asked why, but their gestures didn’t make sense. Hard to read expressions from a face swollen with edema and deteriorating muscles.

So, I ignored it and tidied up the surroundings. Meanwhile, the kid sat quietly by the fire because it was still chilly in the morning.

The fire? It won’t go out. What kind of flame is this anyway? Entropy or energy conservation pops into mind, but honestly, I’m kinda abnormal myself, so questioning it feels weird. Since the kid isn’t bothered by the fire, it must be fine.

Afterward, I stepped outside. Far in the distance stands a towering building perched atop pillar-like rock formations. Houses sit only on the rocks, connected by pathways weaving between them.

Looking down from the building reveals multiple exits leading straight toward where I am. One side is a cliff, the other tangled with trees and rocks, and eventually, it leads to my house.

They threw me pretty far out here. According to four Harvesters’ memories, regular folks live much farther away. From Jeonyang’s memories, this area used to be inhabited.

Meaning, this is now an abandoned region. But evidence of past habitation suggests buildings nearby. Thus, I decided to scout the area while heading toward the water’s edge for today’s excursion.

Crunch crunch.

Walking along the grass-covered remnants of a path, I realized this body needs exercise too. Rebecca Rolfe abused her heart somehow. Could I use martial arts with this body? Maybe I’ll try tonight.

Tap tap tap.

Before long, footsteps approached behind me. Turning around, I saw the kid stumbling but running hard. Shouldn’t you stay indoors since your body isn’t great?

But why does “not-human” keep popping into my mind again? Compassion? That’d be nice for me to receive.

Grunting inwardly while feeling sorry for myself, I knelt down to meet the kid’s gaze and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Silent, the kid clutched my clothes tightly. They couldn’t speak—not that they wouldn’t.

We walked together. Their short strides slowed us down significantly. We won’t reach the water today. Judging by their gait, joint rotation seems off, making movement tiring. With such swollen legs, walking must be difficult.

Still, we wandered around aimlessly. Buildings and roads’ traces remain, but none are intact. Either strong fighters clashed here, leaving massive holes big enough to swallow someone, or sword slashes carved through landscapes like paintings.

In a village where such events occurred, abandoning it for safer grounds makes perfect sense. Among the overgrown ruins, human bones occasionally poke out, but unfortunately, no warmth lingers. Sometimes corpses retain faint light and warmth, but these bones are far too old.

The kid suddenly gripped my clothes tighter, likely spotting a skeleton following my gaze.

“Who are you guys?”

Suddenly, a raspy voice resembling an elderly woman’s spoke up. Looking over, I saw a woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat draped in semi-transparent cloth, hiding herself.

Yet, I recognize her outfit. I saw her face earlier this morning via Gapjae’s memories. His clear voice contradicts her current disguise, indicating a fake.

Makes sense—if the daughter of the previous sect leader wants secrecy, altering her voice isn’t unusual.

Raising my arm, I pointed toward my house.

“I’ve been staying there since yesterday.”

Hearing this, the woman glanced at the direction I indicated.

“That place isn’t livable, is it?”

Livability? You know the condition of my house. Meaning, you’ve seen it before—at least once.

Whoever she is, she doesn’t seem fond of Qi-user. To demonstrate his badness, I brought the kid forward.

“He sent this child as a maid.”

Hmm.

Her unreadable expression leaves me clueless about her reaction, but she steps closer—not to me, but to the kid.

“Still insect-like, huh? Eat this first, then sit facing away from me.”

She pulled out a small pill from her robes. The kid looked troubled, glancing up at me. Probably some kind of dewormer.

I took a step back, signaling consent with a finger point toward the kid.

“Swallow it no matter how nasty it tastes.”

Understanding my intent, she reassured the kid while handing over the pill, which they gulped down.

Immediately afterward, she removed the kid’s outer clothing and placed her hand on their back. Sending Qi? Either she uses very little or I simply can’t feel it.

Carefully observing, all I see is her hand resting on the kid’s back until suddenly, their face contorts, veins bulging dramatically.

Thinking they might die, I watched anxiously. Their red face returned to normal, and they bent over.

“Cough! Hack!”

A large amount of blood mixed with grotesque insects erupted from the kid’s mouth. Unlike the ones in my head, these lack legs, meaning they’re a different species.

She continued holding the trembling kid, pressing her hand against their back for quite a while. Once the kid slumped, she sighed deeply.

“The crisis has passed. The swelling on their face and body should subside within a month. Let them rest and recover slowly.”

She considers me the guardian? I shook my head.

“It’s impossible.”

“Why?”

Her voice rose slightly. Anger indicates kindness, perhaps? Still, she’s the daughter of the former sect leader, so odds are high she dislikes Qi-user.

Thus, I plan to set her up against him.

“This kid was sent by Qi-user. I have no power.”

Meaning, if he tries anything, I can’t intervene.

“What do you think of this child?”

Ah, a predictable question. Asking if I can properly care for the kid. Hence, I responded ambiguously.

“Warmth.”

“Alright then, could you watch over them for a bit?”

She perfectly misinterpreted my words.

After patting the kid, she stood up and hurried off, hinting at impending trouble soon.

Hehe.

Carrying the kid on my back, I headed home, thinking about the upcoming chaos in the Qi Sect.

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