Rain. Blood. Broken bodies.
In a filthy alley, under a pounding storm, more than ten men lay stacked like garbage—their blood swirling in rainwater already turning pink.
Standing over them, a shirtless man covered in gashes and bruises.
"M-monster... you fucking monster... you never went to the army... and you've never trained in martial arts or hand-to-hand combat... so how... just how... how did you kill 12 of our best men with your bare hands...?" Asked a bloodied man with broken legs lying beside the pile of dead bodies, his face a mix of many different emotions. Fear, despair, disbelief and shock.
"Mother… fuckers…" Azen choked out, fighting for each breath. "I'm a doctor… I'm The doctor... the doctor of everything..."
With every bit of strength left in his body, azen stepped forward, getting closer to the man lying down. He could already feel his body collapsing slowly but he still forced himself to move, pulling a needle out of his pocket.
"Why... do you think... I'm called... "the doctor of everything"...?" Azen asked, a cold expression painting his face.
"It's because... i studied... EVERYTHING... related to... the human body... medicine... illnesses... diseases... even plants... and food in general..." Azen said while coughing up blood.
"If you had... even a fraction... of the knowledge i hold... you would've known... as strong and... amazing as it is... the human body is... very fragile..." Azen said, kneeling down, his body shaking violently as it is already on the verge of collapsing, and bringing the needle closer to the man's face.
Colour drained from the man's face as he recalled the earlier fight. Azen was not strong, fast, smart or experienced, his skills were all below the level of an average guy who never fought in his life before. Despite that, he reacted faster, each and every punch and kick were lethal and in areas where the nociceptors (pain receptors) accurately are, causing every single one of the men to die convulsing and screaming from the agonizing pain they felt.
And the fact that Azen did that and caused them to feel so much pain before killing them with only his bare hands made him even more afraid.
Azen immediately noticed this and his faced twisted into a smile, a manic smile that made the man feel a cold shiver run down his spine. "Ah... don't be like that... i won't make it too... painful... at least... not as painful as... your friends..."
"I'll just... put a small hole... in your aorta... considering your current state... you'll have... approximately... 49 seconds... before you die from... blood loss..." Azen said, his voice carrying a hint of excitement while blood rained from his mouth and nose.
The dying man who was already fearful, collapsed and lost his life after seeing the manic look in Azen's eyes and his blood-covered face smiling.
"Damn... i guess i... scared him... too... much–" before Azen could finish his words, he started coughing blood violently and collapsed on the ground.
I guess this was bound to happen... Azen thought to himself
Seven comminuted rib fractures. Twenty-four lacerations, three of them cutting major arteries and one even cutting my aorta. Internal bleeding from the lungs down. And somehow I'm conscious enough to think about all this. Have i turned into a fucking monster from living my life too healthily?
His vision blurred, and his ears began ringing.
Can't see the sky... Can't even hear my heartbeat... Just the rain and this goddamn pain.
Is this it?After curing the incurable? After all those lives i saved?
Stop...it doesn't matter anymore... I'd better think about something to forget the pain... one last thought... what would most people think about before dying? Oh yeah... regret... but i don't have any regrets...?
No... there is one.
Martial arts... All my life i called it useless. Stupid even. I'm a doctor, I'm supposed to save lives and cure people, not hurt them. Only exception is those fuckers who came to kill me.
When i was a new doctor at my first hospital, most of the cases i received were about kids the age of my own sons and daughters getting broken hands or feet or dislocated shoulders because they trained at the nearby martial arts club.
I changed my mind in the last couple of years though.
I remember when my son came to me with his phone in his hand and showed me that video of the black eyed guy beating up three other strong dudes like nothing using martial arts. He then told me that it was a manhwa.
I pretended that i didn't care at the time but i secretly looked it up and , honestly? It was such a fine piece of fiction. The story wasn't bad but what made me love it was the fights.
No... it wasn't simply the fights... it was my knowledge. It was the fact that i knew that i could do the same things as those people if i wanted to. It was the fact that i knew with enough resources and practice, anyone can do the things these people did.
At least until they started getting way too powerful. Giant craters? Destroying walls like nothing? Hell i remember that some of the characters were strong enough they destroyed small buildings.
Wait a minute... now that i think about it... it's actually possible... yeah, you just need to hit the jackpot in the genetics lottery. There are medical conditions that can make a normal person do what they do with enough training and resources.
Wait... What was its name again? Something that has to do with looks
? Looks... looks... looking... lookism. Right, it was called lookism. Can't believe i forgot, guess it's a side effect of dying.
Martial arts... That manhwa…
Well... If there is a next life, then i wish–
His thoughts shattered. Everything went white. Silent.
---
"Thou who was born with unparalleled genius… I shalt grant thee a gift."
Azen's mind stirred. No pain. No body. Just a voice, deep as a buried god.
"Who are you?"
"Irrelevant. Thou keepest thy memories. Thou choosest one boon—power or item—for thy new life."
New life? Azen's intellect sparked instantly. Transmigration. Rebirth. Confirmed.
"Anything?" he asked.
"Anything."
"I don't want anything fictional. Just some rare genetics. Can you do that?"
"Speak."
"Polymelia—extra functional fingers and toes."
He didn't hesitate. This was a prescription for a new body. And oh was he going to give himself a great body...
"Myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy. Rapid tissue regeneration. Savant syndrome. Hyperacusis. Dermo-optical perception. Eidetic and photographic memory. Hyperthymesia. Hyperacuity. Tetrachromacy."
He paused, imagining it clearly.
"Heterochromia—pink and blue normally, shifting to red and purple under adrenaline. And… a controlled form of fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (aka, the stone man disease). Skin regeneration only, only where I will it."
The voice seemed to pulse with something like curiosity.
"An… unusual request. Very well."
"Now, if i may ask, where will be going? A fantasy world? A world with dungeons and monsters? Or some medieval world with swords and knights?" Azen pressed , excitement burning his entire being.
"A world where strength is written in the flesh. A world thou hast glimpsed in pages."
"What world is that...?" Azen asked, though, deep down, he knew the answer.
"The world that resides in the book called lookism."
Azen almost laughed. Of course.
"Go forth, Doctor of Everything. Thy new life awaits."
And then—
A falling sensation.
Not down.
Forward.