"Kazuki-kun, why are you struggling? This way, we can be together forever."
In the kitchen, a young man was tied to a chair, his face filled with terror as he watched the beautiful woman in front of him, by the sink, sharpening a kitchen knife with a honing steel.
The woman wore nothing but an apron that completely failed to conceal her voluptuous and beautiful figure.
As she sharpened the knife, sparks flew, and the front of her apron subtly trembled.
Below the apron, a pair of long, straight, fair, and flawless legs were exposed to the air.
Faint impressions of intricate patterns, like marks from restraints, could be seen on her thighs.
But at this moment, the young man had no leisure to appreciate this breathtaking sight. He looked at the woman, whose face held a smile as if she were preparing dinner for her beloved, trying to say something as she honed the kitchen knife.
However, the black lace ball stuffed in his mouth allowed him to only make muffled "woo woo woo..." sounds.
The woman put down the honing steel and walked towards the young man with a smile.
She sat on his lap as if playfully teasing a lover, and a slender, fair hand gently caressed his face.
"Kazuki-kun, why are you scared? This way, we'll be together forever, won't we?"
As the kettle in the kitchen began to whistle, signaling the water was boiling, the woman raised the knife in her hand.
"Ah!"
The moment the knife fell, Uesugi Kazuki shot up from his bed.
"A dream... was it a dream?"
As the phantom pain of a kitchen knife piercing his waist lingered, a pop-up window appeared before Uesugi Kazuki's eyes.
[Host Deceased. Returned to The First Checkpoint.]
[Life Achievement System]
[Achievement: First Death]
[Life Achievement Triggered: First Death]
[I truly want to live another five hundred years.]
[Reward: Revival Count +1]
[Constitution +1]
[Remaining Revivals: 3]
As the pop-up appeared, Uesugi Kazuki's hands instinctively fumbled over his body. There were no wounds; everything was where it should be.
It seemed he had truly died and been resurrected...
In other words, he had really been stabbed to death with a kitchen knife...
"Kazuki-kun! I heard a scream, did something happen?"
Just as Uesugi Kazuki let out a sigh of relief, hurried footsteps sounded outside his room, along with the anxious voice of a woman whose gentleness could be felt just by hearing her speak.
The moment he heard that voice, Uesugi Kazuki leaped out of bed as if he'd been kicked, rushing to the door and bracing it shut.
He locked the door and gripped the doorknob tightly.
The owner of that voice was the woman who, not long ago, had plunged a kitchen knife into his waist – his stepmother, Uesugi Riko.
The instant Uesugi Kazuki braced the door, he heard someone trying to open it from the outside.
"I'm fine... I was just watching a horror movie and got scared, I'm fine, really, you should get some rest... Mom..."
After Uesugi Kazuki's explanation, the person outside stopped trying to open the door.
When she spoke again, her voice had calmed down.
"Then... then Kazuki-kun, don't watch for too long, get some rest early, you have school tomorrow."
Then, footsteps sounded again outside the room, but they were noticeably lighter than the hurried steps from before.
As Uesugi Riko's footsteps gradually faded, Uesugi Kazuki leaned against the door and sat on the floor.
After a long sigh of relief, Uesugi Kazuki buried his face in his lap and softly uttered a colorful expletive.
After calming himself down, Uesugi Kazuki raised his head again and surveyed his room.
Everything in the room was exactly as he had seen it before.
Seeing the alarm clock on his bedside table, Uesugi Kazuki squinted.
The time on the alarm clock showed 1 AM on September 10th.
Uesugi Kazuki clearly remembered that when he woke up after transmigrating, it was 7:30 AM on September 10th.
After a few absurd days, he was now back to September 10th, the so-called first checkpoint...
Uesugi Kazuki recalled what had happened over the past few days.
Originally, he was just an ordinary young man from ****, but he woke up one day to find he had transmigrated.
He was now a Japanese second-year high school student named Uesugi Kazuki.
His grades were good, and his specialty was kendo, but due to some unpleasantness with the club captain at the end of the previous semester, he was currently a member of the "go-home club" (meaning he wasn't part of any club).
Due to his parents' divorce, his father had recently remarried a beautiful stepmother who wasn't much older than Uesugi Kazuki himself.
However, just a few days after the marriage, his father was transferred overseas for a solo assignment by his company.
Only Uesugi Kazuki and his stepmother, Uesugi Riko, were left at home.
The original Uesugi Kazuki seemingly didn't like this stepmother, who was more beautiful than flowers.
Before his father left for his solo assignment, his stepmother had promised his father to take good care of Uesugi Kazuki.
Therefore, the relationship between the two was very tense.
Uesugi Riko tried various ways to ease their relationship, but in the end, she only received Uesugi Kazuki's cold shoulder and accusations of being a "vixen."
Then, the "player" controlling Uesugi Kazuki's body changed.
After the change, facing Uesugi Riko's endless attempts to please him and her flattering compliance,
Uesugi Kazuki, being new to the situation, naturally couldn't grasp what was going on.
So, under Uesugi Riko's constant attempts to please him, things naturally became absurd.
Typically, such absurd situations usually ended with someone getting pregnant.
So, after a few absurd days, Uesugi Kazuki, who finally remembered he was still a student, said at the dinner table, "I have school tomorrow."
Then, Uesugi Kazuki was knocked out by a punch from Uesugi Riko.
When he woke up again, he was tied to a chair in the kitchen.
After that came his death and resurrection.
After reviewing his past actions, Uesugi Kazuki came to a conclusion.
That is, cherish life, and stay away from stepmoms.
The original body's owner ignored his stepmom and was living just fine; when he started interacting with her, trouble began.
So, if he just ignored his stepmom from now on, wouldn't everything be fine?
Based on the principle of cherishing life and staying away from stepmoms, Uesugi Kazuki discovered from the original body's memories that Japanese high school students could work part-time.
So, the immediate goal was set: first, earn money from part-time work and move out of the house.
Although the absurdity of the situation was mostly his fault, being stabbed with a kitchen knife was just too ridiculous.
Moving out, he had to move out. He couldn't stay in this house for another minute.
However, it was late now, so he might as well get some sleep first.
---
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