It has been a few days since he received the box, with golden linings and a strange aura.
It’s just a box, but it emanates a feeling far more mysterious than that. The size of a Rubik’s cube, black in color, with golden linings that emit an aura which only he can sense.
He doesn’t try to discard it. The thought doesn’t cross his mind even once. He isn’t afraid of it...
...because he is not afraid of losing his life either.
Though, despite the lack of fear, he still hadn’t thought that this small box would throw him into such a strange world.
Welcome to the Adult Diary.
Disclaimer: Try to remain sane.
The first courier — The Package of Beginning.
Knock!
The apartment door creaks open from the knock. A courier comes, wrapped in a sleek black bag.
There’s no delivery man, only the box and the slip upon it.
He bends down to take the slip and reads its content with a raised eyebrow.
First courier - The Package of Beginning.
Mission - Show your will.
Reward - None.
His eyebrows furrow immediately after reading the content of the slip. He just shakes his head to shake off the uncomfortable feeling before he opens the box.
I should check it here carefully... It can be a bomb.
The box opens. There’s no bomb, no gunpowder hidden inside. But something else is hidden underneath the foam and cardboard.
His hand sinks down inside the box. He searches blindly for anything, and finally his hand comes out with a football-sized ball. The black ball and the golden linings around it...!
The thought occurs to him too late.
The black box inside his wardrobe stirs suddenly, inside his room. There is a sound of something hitting against something.
At the doorway, he feels the pull from the ball, which seems to attract the box inside. He tries to stop, but his body finds it difficult to hold the ball still.
His feet move toward his room.
One step. Two. Three. Four...
He finally stops in front of the wardrobe. The attraction between the circular orb and the box increases due to the closer distance. Then, the wardrobe finally yanks open.
He stumbles back out of shock, but it’s useless. The box jumps by itself toward him, or, to be precise, toward the orb.
The box hits the orb, and through a completely unnatural phenomenon, it sinks into it and vanishes.
W... what is happening?
He has no time to process the logic behind this strange phenomenon before he feels his world suddenly turning upside down. First, it feels like a hangover, then his body feels separated into many different parts.
His head feels like it belongs in a different world. His lower body feels loose on the earth. His middle section seems unnaturally heavy on the earth.
He tries to shift, to make some movement to make this feeling of separation disappear, but his effort works against him instead. His pupils roll up, and then only the white remains.
His head sways for a few seconds to find the balance before he finally slumps back fully onto the floor. His body loses consciousness.
The black orb stirs again and expands until it becomes big enough to the size of his body. It stops hovering in the air and comes down on his body, and then slowly... absorbs him completely.
At this moment, a similar kind of data echoes in his mind, but he’s not awake to hear it now.
Mission: Show your will [Keep your body from breaking apart]
Then, the words fade... and the orb too.
The world that appears before his eyes is different from his own world. The light seems brighter here, the air feels too fresh, and the wind hits faster.
"Hey, Jack!" A man calls him from somewhere. But the words feel confusing to him right now.
Then, the cloud from his mind seems to shift as he finally notices his surroundings. The long line of a street stretches far away into the distance. On either side of the street are shops, houses, and stalls.
The man who called earlier steps even closer to him. His voice feels clearer now when he hears him again.
"Why are you standing here like an idiot, Jack? You will get a beating from your wife if you delay one more second."
What...? What is he talking about? Who is Jack? That’s not my name.
He tries to speak, but his throat feels too dry suddenly. He coughs once and then twice. Finally, he notices his own voice. His voice sounds different now.
What happens next becomes inexplicable to him. His lips move, and then he speaks.
"Shut up, Derek. So what if I got late? What can she do to me?"
Saying that, he starts moving away toward the opposite direction, leaving Derek behind. He doesn’t know why he is moving, but his feet move by themselves as if they know the reason, but only he doesn’t.
The silhouette of Derek vanishes behind him at some point in the distance. He keeps moving and moving until his feet finally stop.
He looks at the place where he has stopped. It looks like a one-story building, but the design is strange, like the other buildings he saw on his way here. The design doesn’t feel illogical to him; it just feels strange, like he has seen it many times, but there is still a sense of unfamiliarity with it.
Before he knows it, he has already stepped inside the house. On the ground floor, there is no one. He walks upstairs automatically. Finally, in a room on the first floor, a woman stands near the window.
There is no hesitation in his steps as he moves inside the room. The woman notices him and recognizes him instantly.
"Oh, Jack. You are finally here... I thought I would have to wait for even longer."
She turns around to face him. She doesn’t look rich, but she is not poor either. With a set of a light brown blouse and a creamy skirt, she stands beautiful and attractive.
His body doesn’t feel attracted to her for some reason despite her beauty. He keeps moving ahead until he stands in front of her. His hands reach forward to rest on the woman’s waist before he pulls her closer.
"You could trust me over it. That stupid Derek said I would be in danger if I delayed anymore."
The woman lets out a chuckle, soft and gentle. She covers the back of his hand on her waist and voluntarily takes a step toward him, pressing her body against him slowly.
"He said so? Well, then maybe I should really be strict with you sometimes..."
At this moment, he feels a strange sensation within him. His hands, which moved almost casually toward her earlier, seem to go astray from their rhythm.
His fingers tighten slightly on her waist, his palms splay more widely there.
I... why is this body acting strange...?
The woman’s glance flickers down at his hand, confusedly.
"Jack...?"
But she doesn’t try to move away. Instead, her hand presses on his hand further against her hip as she lets out a surprised sigh.
"Huh... you are suddenly in the mood today, hm? It makes me happy that you finally found some interest in me..."
His mind grows heavy, his palms shift on her hips more...
Then, a voice appears inside his head again.
Mission starts: The Will has been threatened. Resolve it before you break.