4 Arc One (3)

Transmigrating a second time hurt more than drowning a second time.

As pain once more rippled through his body, Nicholas stumbled into a corner of the small room he found himself in. Back pressed into the corner, he slid down the wall and rested his head on his knees while attempting to catch his breath. From the corner of his eye he could see a maroon curtain that stopped approximately a ruler length from the ground. Opposite was a cream wall with a full-length mirror. It was obviously a changeroom, but unlike any changeroom Nicholas had ever been in before… only he had been here before.

Nicholas blinked as the videogame style dialogue box appeared in the air before him.

"What?" Choose his name? Didn't he already do this step?

"Ah… Nicholas Kim." There was no point changing his name— he had retained the memories from his previous attempt at the mission and was just waiting for the system to give him the same options as last time. Obviously there was some detail in the world plot that wasn't found in the original's memories.

<Character Name: Nicholas Kim.

Mission: Save the Cannon Fodder Nicholas Kim

Save point established>

"Nicky?" A low, melodic voice interrupted his musings and the green leather pumps that stopped outside the curtain told Nicholas the female lead had come to check on him.

"Just a minute." Calling out to the waiting Louisa, Nicholas leaned his head on his knees. What happened? Wasn't he supposed to get the option between synching the memories or learning the world plot? "Pfft. Some help this stupid system is."

"I have to say 'help'?"

. <You have selected the Help Option. Help Option already selected for this mission.>

"Well, does it reset with every mission?"

"Useless system." With a sigh, Nicholas tucked in the lilac short and posed in the changeroom doorway. "What do you think?"

"Oh Nicky!" Louisa clapped her hands together and he would swear she bounced like a little girl. "You look gorgeous."

"I know." Following the familiar script from his first foray into the mission, Nicholas bantered with the female lead as they continued shopping; all the while wracking his brain to figure out a way to save himself and the female lead.

"System?" He tried mentally calling to the supposedly guiding entity but received no answer. It would have been helpful to know if he had to save the female lead too… or was this just like a completely immersive video game? The world obviously had respawn points and a save option so if the female lead did get hit by the car would she just respawn and the story start again? Was his mission really that simple?

The more he thought about it, the more Nicholas thought his deduction was correct. It did feel more like an immersive video game than a real world, and it was his first mission. Video games usually included an introductory world or tutorial level that was fairly basic and simply to let the gamer become familiar with the controls. Dying so quickly after transmigrating actually had taught him a lot about the system;

1. Transmigrating hurt.

2. Upon dying before completing the mission he would return to the initial moment of

transmigration.

3. The system was voice activated (admittedly limited to a mere "Help" option).

4. The Help Option could only be activated once per mission.

5. Synching the original's memories didn't guarantee knowing all the details necessary to survive the world.

Working on the assumption that this first mission was basically a tutorial mission, Nicholas felt his confidence rise. All he needs to do is avoid rescuing the female lead at the cost of his own life— mission complete, on to the next mission, and one step closer to returning home.

With his spirits' buoyed, Nicholas squared his shoulders and stepped back into the fray. Dying twice because he'd impulsively moved to save a damsel in distress had taught him that he was unlikely to remain a bystander and simply watch the female lead get hit by the car. No, he was better off avoiding the entire situation which meant he needed an excuse to leave early and separate from the female lead.

Looking around for inspiration, Nicholas' eyes lit up as he found the perfect excuse.

"Louisa… are you done trying on shoes yet? I've been your loyal servant carrying all your bags around. The least you can do is feed a poor serf. How does sushi sound?"

"Sounds like seared salmon sashimi to me."

"How on earth does 'sushi' sound like 'seared salmon sashimi'? Aside from the obvious sibilance, the two are very different."

"They both include rice and delicious fish. Same thing."

Nicholas rolled his eyes and gave a theatrical sigh as their argument continued right up until they sat down at the sushi train. Their bickering continued, but this time over who had control of the tablet used for ordering.

"I don't want unidentified raw fish." Nicholas scrunched his nose up at Louisa's order of awabi sushi.

"It's abalone. Not 'unidentified'."

"It's grey and slimy and looks like genitals. I'm not eating that."

The sushi chef, who had been listening to their interaction with a hidden smile, suddenly found himself in the middle of a coughing fit.

"Nicky..." Batting her eyelashes, Louisa ignored the dramatically dying chef and continued her campaign to get Nicholas to eat at least one portion of everything she had ordered.

"No. I have come shopping with you..."

"You know you have fun when we go shopping."

"... I have carried all of your bags..."

"Not all of them are mine. Some are yours."

"... and now my legs hurt and I am tired and hungry and I just want to eat before my stomach cannibalises itself and why are you torturing me like this?"

"Give me my fun, Nicky, and I promise I will give you the best present you could ever ask for." Lousia draped her arm over her friend's shoulder and knew that she'd hooked him when his shoulders heaved with a silent sigh.

"Fine. It better be a damn good present." Shuddering, Nicholas eyed off the variety of plates on the counter in front of them. He'd never planned on refusing Louisa's attempts to widen his palate; not when she'd given him such a handy excuse to escape. Still... he looked at the pale grey abalone that shone under the artificial lights and gulped. Maybe drowning would be the more painless option?

An hour later, complaining of nausea and stomach cramps, Nicholas was able to leave Lousia behind and make his way back to the apartment owned by the original. The Female Lead had tried to accompany him home, concern clear on her face, but he put his foot down and called a cab. If she came home with him it would be too difficult to continue acting as though he was about to throw up any second. Not when he'd thoroughly enjoyed the meal and even found the abalone palatable if he closed his eyes and refused to look at what he was putting in his mouth.

When the cab dropped him off outside a large, fairly ostentatious apartment building that came with its own footman, Nicholas struggled to hide his awe. It was fancier than he expected, but given the standard of boutique they'd been shopping in, the marble foyer with the overly obsequious concierge shouldn't really have come as a surprise.

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