00:00 – June 5th, 1349
I hear the sound of footsteps above my head and a terrible snoring beside me. It sounds like people are arguing on the floor above.
This smell of mold… these cracked walls… everything feels so old.
00:01
I'm lying on an incredibly uncomfortable bed.
Is this straw?
Looking up, I can see a ceiling full of mold, and honestly, it looks like it might collapse on my head at any moment.
And that red light coming through the window…
Red lamps?
00:02
There's a rat in the middle of the room.
The bed creaks loudly when I try to get up, as if it might break in half at any moment.
Looking around more carefully, I notice another bed.
Someone is sleeping there, snoring loudly. The sound reminds me of an old, dying engine.
Where the hell am I?
00:03
The floor is freezing.
The room is painted in a strange red light. It almost looks like something out of a horror movie.
If this place wasn't so filthy and disgusting, I might even say the red lighting looks romantic.
Every step I take, I feel dust sticking to my feet.
And the rat doesn't even care about me.
Am I so miserable that even a rat isn't afraid of me?
00:04
It's both terrifying and beautiful.
A red moon paints the city in a pale crimson glow that mixes strangely with the pale white light of the night.
This miserable place…
These filthy European streets…
It's like I'm inside an old movie.
But this isn't a movie.
It's far too real.
This place is—
00:05
A dirty yellow sack filled with straw suddenly hits my head.
A male voice shouts:
"DO YOU THINK YOU LIVE ALONE, IDIOT?! IF YOU MAKE NOISE AGAIN, I'LL BREAK YOU!"
It's the guy who was snoring.
He is—
My head suddenly starts to hurt.
Memories that aren't mine begin to flood my mind.
The pain is unbearable.
The floor feels cold and dusty beneath me. The only thing I can see is a rat staring at me… and a pair of dirty feet walking toward me.
What's happening?
It's getting dark…
08:25
That same feeling again.
A sack filled with straw hitting my head.
But this time it doesn't stop.
When I open my eyes, there's a man standing in front of me holding the yellow sack.
And that sack is starting to annoy me.
He throws it at my face again.
My hands grab it and I feel the straw inside.
But something feels wet.
This isn't water, is it?
The man says:
"Get up, idiot! Today is the day you find a job!"
This bastard who keeps hitting me with a pillow is my friend.
Gus.
And somehow, I've discovered something impossible.
I'm inside someone else's body.
Pierre Barn.
How that happened, I have absolutely no idea.
Pierre:"Gus, if you keep using the pillow like that it's going to tear, and Mrs. Lydia will charge us for it. We can barely afford the rent!"
Gus:"That's exactly why I'm hitting you! So you go find a job and help pay it! Now get dressed. If you're lucky, I might be able to recommend you at the factory!"
Now I can see better.
Under my bed is a pair of shoes that look extremely worn out.
The clothes I have to go outside with are… honestly questionable.
A cheap brown coat made of poor fabric, and trousers made of something just as bad.
It seems my dignity was left behind in another life.
To use the bathroom we have to go to a shared one in the building.
Honestly, it's strange waking up and immediately seeing so many people.
For someone who used to live alone and enjoyed the company of his own shadow, calling this place hell would not be an exaggeration.
Our little room has almost nothing.
At most, there's a decaying desk with some papers and pencils.
Gus has already left, but—
"HEY YOU LAZY BASTARDS! DON'T FORGET TO PAY THE RENT TOMORROW!"
That delicate maiden who almost knocked my door down with nothing but pounding and shouting is Lydia, the owner of this dump.
She has a reputation for having connections with local gangs.
Whenever someone fails to pay the rent, she hands them over for the gangs to "have fun".
In the worst cases, they enslave them.
For the gangs, it's free slaves and entertainment.
For her, it's a way to terrorize the tenants—and also protection. No one dares invade territory marked by gangs.
But something about this arrangement still feels wrong.
And I don't know what it is.
And honestly… I'm not sure I want to find out.
Well.
Now that it seems I'm inside some kind of suspense novel—or maybe a very dramatic one…
What should I do?
Looking around the room, there isn't much to investigate.
Poverty seems to have robbed me of the luxury of details.
Two beds.
A bit strange having to sleep while staring at a friend, but what can I do?
A ruined desk with some papers and an old cheap pen.
But something catches my attention.
Under my bed there are rats… and my shoes.
On Gus's bed there are many boxes.
Is that where we store things?
Maybe there's something useful inside that could help me understand these confusing memories.
But the strangest thing are these rats.
They just keep staring at me.
I've never seen rats so confident.
Did I used to share food scraps with them?
Or do they simply despise me?
I think it's better to leave them alone.
If I mess with them too much, I might get sick.
Actually… this entire place is dangerous.
Now I understand why death rates in history books were so high.
Time to check the boxes.
They feel cold to the touch.
Almost like they were taken out of a freezer.
They're already open.
Inside there are…
Books?
Wait.
Gus can read?
I thought not everyone knew how to read during this era.
But what's even stranger are the covers.
They all have eyes drawn on them in a gothic style, with detailed illustrations.
They look extremely old.
In modern times, book covers are usually minimalist.
A chill runs down my spine.
Just as I'm about to grab one of the books—
A letter slides under the door.
The atmosphere suddenly feels colder.
The letter has a seal.
And it looks almost identical to the eye on the book covers.
I can't move.
Adrenaline floods my body.
The shadow of the person who delivered it is still standing in front of the door.
And I feel like that shadow is staring at me.
Footsteps echo in the hallway.
Then I hear one of the residents shouting outside.
Who is he yelling at?
What is that shadow?
I can see the shadow of the man's feet walking away.
But I hear no footsteps.
None at all.
Only my neighbor complaining outside, muttering that he can't stand strange people coming into the building anymore.
What just happened?