After Ten Lifetimes, I'm Done Struggling のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 1 - チャプター 10

In the middle of the night, someone stealthily pushed open the greenhouse door.I lay in the soil, half-asleep. I heard the noise, but I didn't move a muscle.Then, a pungent, acrid smell of herbicide began to permeate the air.Kevin trampled the orchids Mom had been growing in the greenhouse. He then sprayed the entire space with two bottles of herbicide. And finally, he locked the greenhouse door from the outside.The toxic fumes spread.My throat tightened, and breathing became difficult. Based on my experiences across my previous ten lifetimes, death by pesticide was a fairly standard affair. It didn't even faze me anymore.I shifted into a more comfortable position and took a deep, long breath of the toxic air.Perfect. This time, I should finally be able to die for good, right?Just as my consciousness began to slip away, a loud crash echoed from outside, and a security guard on his rounds forced open the greenhouse's glass door.Fresh air rushed in, and I was hauled out

Three days after I was discharged from the hospital, Mom and Dad took the whole family to the villa in Navarro Hills. At their insistence, I reluctantly allowed myself to sit in the back seat of the car this time.It had been raining heavily for days, leaving the roads a muddy mess. Upon arrival at the villa, everyone immediately swarmed around Kevin."Kevin, we decorated this room to your taste. Go take a look and see if you like it!""Just let us know if anything is missing. We'll have it brought over right away."Kevin linked his arm through Dad's, offering a sweet, well-behaved smile as he said, "I know I'll love it as long as it's something that you picked out for me."Only after everyone else had chosen their rooms did Mom turn to ask which one I wanted. But since the only room left was the one tucked away against the mountainside, I didn't know why she bothered with asking me at all.Once inside, I instinctively scanned the room. It wasn't too bad. The space under the bed

Mom's knees gave way. With a pained cry, she collapsed into the mire.An excavator cleared away the surrounding rubble. Search and rescue workers carefully lifted my body out and laid it flat on a stretcher.There was hardly an inch of uninjured skin left on me.A wooden splinter had pierced through my lower leg, and my chest was slightly sunken. Rainwater had washed the blood and grime from my face, revealing a lifeless, hollow expression.Dad stood frozen, trembling uncontrollably. He didn't even have the courage to step forward and take a closer look."Impossible... This can't be…"Kathy broke free from the bodyguards and lunged toward the stretcher. She grabbed me by the collar and began to shake me violently."Kenneth, get up! Open your eyes! You're just pretending to be dead again, aren't you? I know how much you love playing dead! "Your body is still warm! Get up, right now!"Behind them, Kevin wiped away his tears, his voice thick with sobs as he chimed in, "Kathy's r

My soul drifted into the air, watching everything unfold in the hospital hallway, while my body was covered by a white sheet and wheeled toward the morgue.The doctor's words struck Mom's heart like a blade. She fainted. Dad caught her before she hit the floor, then sank onto the tiles with her in his arms.Staring at his own hands, he suddenly began to lash out, striking his own face repeatedly in a fit of madness."I should have knocked on that door! Why didn't I just knock on that door?"Kathy's legs gave way. She sank to her knees, her mind reeling."It can't be… How could he be dead?"She lunged toward the gurney and tore away the white sheet, revealing my face beneath it, completely drained of all color.She used to yell and scream at me, telling me I always wore a "dead expression" on my face. But now that she was actually seeing one, she trembled violently with terror."Dead? Is he really just… dead?"In the deathly silence, Kevin stepped forward, tears streaming down

I suddenly realized I was beginning to admire Kevin a little. He was wicked, yet entirely clear-headed. He also understood me really well.My entire family was left speechless, completely stunned by his words.Mom crawled on her knees to the side of my gurney, her hands trembling as she brushed my hair aside. As she gazed at my face that was battered and disfigured beyond recognition, every trace of emotion drained from her expression."It's… It's all my fault."Dad slumped to the floor, burying his face in his hands and sobbing uncontrollably."Kenneth said something terrible would happen… I thought he was just joking… I never meant for him to die… How could it come to this?"The facade Kathy had clung to was torn away completely. Consumed by a mix of shame and rage, she lunged forward with a roar, knocking Kevin to the ground. She straddled him and rained down frantic blows across his face."It was you! You vicious, wretched, son of a bitch!"The two of them began to brawl ri