"Life is beautiful when everything is peaceful." Leon's black hair danced softly as a gentle breeze brushed against him.
Leon was currently strolling on the sidewalk and enjoying the late afternoon atmosphere alone.
His heart throbbed with happiness as a happy smile spread across his face. He had been spending his time only practicing martial arts for the past few months.
Now that the provincial tournament had ended and he had won the gold medal, he decided to reward himself by visiting a beautiful place because his body and mind needed some rest, too.
'Should I go to Azureveil Beach and enjoy the sunset there?'
He touched his chin.
'Yeah! I think that's a great idea!'
He made up his mind.
'I will buy some snacks first.'
As he was heading to the convenience store, a blue BMW car sped towards him.
Leon hadn't noticed it because the vehicle came from behind him.
"NO! NO! NO!" The driver panicked and could not control the steering wheel.
He hit two motorcycles and a car before his vehicle finally headed toward Leon.
Bang!
The car hit Leon from behind very hard, sending him flying into the air.
Upon crashing onto the asphalt, his body rolled several meters before finally slamming into the guardrail.
"Cough…Cough…Cough…" blood dripped from his lips as his blurry vision fell on the overturned car.
'I… just wanted to enjoy the peaceful afternoon.'
He coughed weakly.
'Why did it end like this?'
With that last question, Leon closed his eyes forever.
----
Unknown Place, Forest.
"Ouch!" A young man, about eighteen years old, cried out in pain as he sat up.
'I…survived?'
His eyes widened in shock.
'Wait… didn't I die on the outskirts of the city? Why am I in the forest now?'
He rose to his feet and skimmed his surroundings.
'These… these are not my hands… this is not my body!'
The moment his gaze fell on his hands, memory fragments flashed before his eyes like a slideshow.
'This is…'
The young man finally knew what had happened to him.
He took over someone else's body!
Not only that, but he had also transmigrated into a world of magic and beast transformation where powerful people could do whatever they wanted, and the weak were treated like ants.
'So, my predecessor's name is Ren Starfall, huh?'
He finally learned the name of his predecessor.
His predecessor was a kind and diligent person. He had no parents and was raised at Silverleaf Orphanage.
He left the orphanage last year with the hope of becoming a powerful awakener so that he could protect the orphanage forever.
Unfortunately, fate was cruel to him as he belonged to the thirty percent of people destined to be ordinary for the rest of their lives.
Since non-awakeners were at the bottom of the hierarchy, he tried his best to change his life in the last few months.
But all of his efforts were in vain.
He still failed to become an awakener!
When rumors of a magical fruit that could change a person's destiny reached his ears, he wasted no time and went straight into the forest.
He knew the rumors might be false, but he still looked for it because it was his only chance to change his future.
Tragically, he was killed before finding the fruit, so he died with sadness and unwillingness to accept his fate.
'I'm sorry your story ended like this, but I will give you the ending you deserve.'
His eyes softened with emotion.
'Thank you for allowing me to use your body, my predecessor. I swear I won't waste it. I will make your dreams my own and make sure everyone in this world knows my name.'
He shook his head immediately.
'No… not my name. Our name.'
A gentle breeze suddenly brushed against him, as if the world itself had heard his vow and sealed it in the sky.
'I have to get out of this forest first.'
He grabbed the dagger on the ground and began searching for a way out.
Five minutes…
Ten minutes…
Thirty minutes…
He had been walking for about an hour, but all he saw were only two things.
Trees and mountains!
Ren stopped walking and took a deep breath.
'Am I terrible with directions, or is this forest really that huge?'
He rested for five minutes before finally walking again.
At the same time, a young girl about eighteen years old was being chased by two old men. The young woman had long purple hair and violet eyes.
Her arms were full of bruises, and blood stains were visible on her clothes. The name of the young girl was Elara Moonvile.
Elara ran into the two old men when she was looking for edible fruit. The grown men were stunned by her beauty and could not suppress the flames of lust within them.
Since she was alone, they decided to follow their desire because they believed that tasting her incredible body would make them feel as if they were in paradise.
This was the story behind the reason why they were chasing Elara.
'What should I do? I can't keep running away like this, but I can't defeat them alone either.'
Even though they were not awakeners, she was still no match for them because she was just like them.
'A young man?'
A spark of happiness emerged within her when she caught sight of Ren, but she didn't run toward him immediately.
'Should I ask for his help?'
She wavered whether she should drag him into her problem or not.
'He looks like a kind person. Yes. I should ask for his help. As long as it's one versus one, I can win.'
She made up her mind and ran toward him.
"Hmm?" Ren stopped walking and shifted his gaze when the sound of their footsteps reached his ears.
'Does she want to ask for my help?'
A question flashed through his mind.
Once she was before him, she immediately said, "I'm sorry for dragging you into my problem. I can't beat them both alone at once. Please help me hold one of them. I will help you after I defeat the other."
"Hehe. Girl, do you think he can save you? Young man, I sugg-" the blue-haired man named Zane stopped his words halfway when he saw Ren. "You… you… How can you still be alive?"
The red-haired man named Tristan was also shocked. "Weren't you already dead earlier?"