[Pov of the midwife]
I'll never forget the day my life changed forever. I was just a simple midwife, living in a flourishing community, surrounded by happy and normal people. But that all changed when the curse, demon children plagued our village.
These cursed ones werent wild beasts or monster as many people might thought them to be. They were male children, who have been deprived of their humanity, they were said to bring about darkness and terror, which this darkness somehow came to our peaceful village.
But as time passed, strange people gradually emerged, claiming to have knowledge about these demon spawns and the reason for their existence.
They worked with us, researching and experimenting, trying to find a way to stop these plague.
I watched as they introduced their powerful gods, cast magical spells and performed miracles.
We became dependent on them, fearing the demon spawns and our own mortality. We begged them to help us, to stop the constant breeding of these monsters.
But it was easier said than done. The strange people worked tirelessly, exhausting themselves to create a solution.
They cast spells, performed rituals, and tried everything to stop the cursed ones. But despite their efforts, the cursed ones continued to appear.
Years went by, and these strange people disappeared, only to return with a new solution.
They introduced a test, a way to identify these cirsed one at birth. And that's when the real horror began.
If any male child was confirmed to be a cursed one, the parents would abandon them. The villagers would treat the family with contempt, and the child would be shunned and bullied. It was a cycle of hate and fear, and was impossible to break.
I've seen it happen time and time again. Mothers rejecting their children, husbands abandoning their wives. It's a tragedy, and a sin.
But then, I saw something that gave me hope. A family, Elina and her husband, who welcomed their newborn son with open arms.
The child had pitch-black eyes, a sign of being a cursed one. But Elina's smile was warm and loving as she revealed the baby to her two little girls.
"Mummy, is this our baby? Are...they going to take him away like they did to big brother?" one of the girls asked.
Elina's response was gentle, "Shush honey, Mummy and daddy will protect him."
I watched as the little girls stared at their brother with excitement and eagerness. They didn't see the child as a cursed one, they saw a little brother. Elina's husband, a rough-looking man with a handsome face, smiled with joy.
It was a small act of defiance, but it gave me hope. Maybe, just maybe, there was a way to break the cycle of hate and fear. Maybe there was a way to love and accept these cursed ones, rather than rejecting them.
As I watched Elina and her family, I felt a sense of wonder and awe. They were choosing to love, despite the fear and uncertainty that surrounded them.
I knew that I would never forget the sight of that little family, united in their love and acceptance of a cursed one as their child.
....
Huh? What was going on? I didn't know what was happening, but I tried to form a thought as the fear of the unknown pounded my chest.
The sensation I felt went beyond anything I'd ever known. What was that blinding light? Why did I feel short of breath just a moment ago? And most importantly, why did I vomit?
Everything seemed to be in a reverie.
Or could I be dreaming? Why else would I suddenly feel so off? Wasn't I supposed to be dead?
Damn it, don't tell me something happened while I was in that dark space. Maybe I didn't die like I thought. But if I wasn't dead—what was that place I was in?
I felt jittery at the thought of not knowing what happened to me. From the look of things, and from how I thought things might have been, I might have ended up in an accident since there didn't seem to be any better explanation for my circumstances.
My mind ran amok with possibilities, while the throbbing pain from the burst of light flooded in. Then, in the next moment, my pale black pupils shrank.
[A half-cursed soul detected!]
[Half Cursed Soul! Welcome to your second world!]
[Transmigrating into a second world completed]
[Transmigrating into a second world completed]
I was in a flutter as I stared at these sudden, strange words in front of me.
"What is this?"
I thought to myself, silently, while I lay in the arms of my new mother.
"Is it some kind of game or what? And what does it mean, a soul detected and a half-cursed soul?"
Immediately, as my mind wandered to that point, a black flat screen full of white words slowly appeared before my eyes.
[Request Accepted]
[Status Screen Unfolding]
Character Name: Ragna
Titles: Half Cursed Soul
Age: an hour old
Sex: Male
Race: Unknown
Level: 0
Exp: 0/100
HP: 5/10
[Attributes]
Mana: 00
Strength: 00
Agility: 00
Vitality: 00
Agility: 00
Mana Sense: 00
Bloodline: (Unknown)???????
Skills: None
[New character Starter Pack. The starter pack would be unlocked within [5 days]
I was still staring in wonder at this strange screen that had suddenly popped up. I knew it was familiar, but I still had a hard time digesting all this information, including the sudden new reality of life and being labeled by the system as a half-cursed soul.
The status screen mocked me with its game-like clarity. It felt like I was looking at a video game screen, no—like I was inside a virtual reality game itself. I had questions, but barely any answers. There were many tabs on the status screen, and, without me lifting a finger, a message began to reveal itself slowly.
As I watched the black screen, I tried to move my limbs, but something was off. My body was heavy with extreme fatigue.
Unable to move, I considered possibilities, thinking I might have reincarnated after all, perhaps as some compensation or reward. Even though I understood nothing of what was happening, I didn't really care anymore. I felt a strange euphoria, and that was all that mattered.
Before I could dwell on it further, something soft pressed against my face and a bland liquid began to pour into my mouth, it was the breast of my mother.
I nearly choked on it, instinctively I clamped my small hands around what was in my mouth and gulping down another mouthful. It tasted like milk, but sweeter—nectar, warm and comforting—and I felt an undeniable hunger I couldn't quell.
I shifted my gaze to the woman with half-closed eyes. She had long black silk hair spread across her back and emerald-green eyes beneath slender brows.
Staring at her, I found myself at a loss for how to feel. Should I be happy or cry? How could a grown man lean on a woman who I was older than? Still, I was grateful, even if I couldn't admit it out loud.
The milk in my throat tasted sweeter than anything I'd ever known, yet it couldn't wash away the bitterness gnawing at my heart. Was coming to this world a gift or a curse—for me, for this family? I knew I couldn't reverse it, not even if I tried.
Then strange, childlike voices—feminine, perhaps—rang in my ears, and everything blurred into a flash. I looked down and saw I'd been lifted by a firm grip of a man, his face a blur to me.