The mc's name will change to Japanese after he gets reborn.
---
Inside a cramped apartment of less than twenty square meters, the only sources of light were a dim energy-saving bulb and the glow of a phone screen.
"Sigh…"
A sigh filled with mixed emotions escaped as the phone screen went dark.
Moments earlier, Bai Yun had just finished watching a pirated version of the Demon Slayer movie on his phone.
He had no choice.
The price of a movie ticket was enough for him to live frugally for several days. With his current financial situation, spending such a "huge sum" for a bit of entertainment was simply out of the question.
That sigh carried two feelings.
One was regret for the tragic fates of those vivid characters in the story.
The other was helpless resignation toward his own reality.
Shaking his head lightly to clear his mood, Bai Yun opened the door, switched off the remaining light, and stepped outside just as the sky darkened.
He was heading to his night shift.
Watching that movie had already used up almost all of his precious daily rest time.
Bai Yun's parents had died in an accident when he was very young. After that, he was raised by a relatively kind relative.
However, that relative's family wasn't well-off either. They already had two children of their own, and taking in Bai Yun only made life tighter for everyone.
Because of that, after finishing compulsory education, Bai Yun voluntarily dropped out to start working.
Having struggled in society since his teens, he hadn't achieved anything remarkable—but at least he could support himself.
He even managed to secure a tiny place in a big city that could barely be called a "home," and during holidays he would send small gifts to the relatives who had once taken him in.
Standing at a red light, Bai Yun drifted off into thought, calculating his savings and considering his future plans.
The final glow of the setting sun mixed with the light from the street lamps, illuminating his face.
His features were delicate yet masculine. Though his frame was somewhat thin due to years of hardship, he was still undeniably handsome.
With such a good appearance, he could have pursued work that relied on his looks and likely earned far more money.
Unfortunately, Bai Yun couldn't bring himself to do it.
Perhaps his thinking was too conservative.
Or perhaps, back then, he simply hadn't been desperate enough.
Time always passed quickly when one's mind wandered.
The long red light Bai Yun had complained about more than once had already turned green without him noticing.
Coming back to his senses, he stepped onto the road, heading toward the other side.
As he walked alone through the night, his thoughts drifted back to the movie he had just watched—along with the anime and the original manga he had occasionally read online.
He thought about the characters.
The ones whose fates left viewers with lingering regrets.
But those thoughts were quickly pushed aside as he reached the curb on the opposite side of the road.
Just then, Bai Yun heard a strange noise nearby.
Before he could turn his head, the gaps between the sidewalk tiles in his vision suddenly slid sideways.
In the instant before Bai Yun stepped onto the curb, an out-of-control car slammed into the nearby roadside barrier.
The entire vehicle launched into the air.
It flew over the cars waiting at the red light—
—and crashed directly into Bai Yun.
Only after his body slammed heavily onto the asphalt and slid several meters did his brain finally register the pain flooding through him.
His vision blurred, tinged with dark red patches.
Blood poured from his nose and mouth, and each breath produced a faint bubbling sound.
Broken ribs had pierced his lungs.
Every breath sent searing pain through his chest—pain that would normally make someone pass out instantly.
Yet under the massive surge of adrenaline, the dying Bai Yun clung stubbornly to a thread of consciousness.
His limbs had lost all sensation except pain.
Through the ringing in his ears, he could faintly hear the panicked cries of passersby.
In those final moments, the brief life he had lived—less than twenty years—flashed before his eyes.
And he suddenly realized something.
The worst "crime" he had committed in his life…
…was simply watching pirated anime and reading pirated novels.
As his consciousness finally faded into darkness, the last thought that surfaced in his chaotic mind was—
In my next life… I'll definitely support official releases.
---
"…My dear son, today is your fourth birthday. How about Daddy plays hide-and-seek with you? You hide well, and Daddy will come find you…"
"…Do we really have to…? He's still so small…"
—
"Poor child…"
"I, this old man, have no descendants. From now on, you'll follow me."
—
"From today onward… my name will be Kanzaki Kumo."
"Child, you… sigh…"
—
"Hiss…"
Breaking free from the fragments of memory, Kanzaki Kumo slowly sat up while clutching his head.
A damp warmth and sticky sensation spread beneath his palm, reminding him of what had happened moments earlier.
Kanzaki Kumo—formerly Bai Yun—had been born into poverty in this life.
When he was four years old, his parents abandoned him due to the pressures of survival.
He still remembered the fake smile on the man's face back then.
And the pale woman with tear-filled eyes, secretly watching from behind a distant mound of dirt.
Fortunately, just as he was about to faint from hunger, he was found and taken in by an old man named Kanzaki Keizan.
The old man treated him like his own grandson.
Keizan lived in a small town and had once been wealthy. However, his son had committed a crime that cost him his life and most of the family fortune.
Since then, the old man had lived alone.
For two or three years, Kanzaki Kumo lived peacefully with him.
During that time, he learned how to read and write.
Eventually, he even took the surname Kanzaki and named himself Kumo.
The old man felt both touched and helpless about this, but seeing the boy's determination, he didn't object.
Unfortunately, the old man did not survive an exceptionally harsh winter.
In this era—where ordinary people struggled just to survive and the powerful did as they pleased—an eight-year-old child had no way to protect property or wealth.
After burying the old man, Kanzaki Kumo began wandering again, carrying only a small amount of money hidden on his body.
Later, he was taken in by the head monk of a small temple.
The temple housed more than ten other orphans around his age.
A group of children who had lost their homes early in life naturally grew close to each other.
They were, in a sense, all the same.
Except for one boy.
Kaigaku.
Yes—Kaigaku.
And in the same temple where Kanzaki Kumo lived, there was also a tall monk who had been blind since birth.
Himejima Gyomei.
Just yesterday, Kaigaku had been caught stealing from the temple for the nth time and was finally driven out by everyone.
But during the night, he sneaked back inside.
When Kanzaki Kumo happened to wake up, he caught Kaigaku tampering with the incense burner.
The two argued.
A scuffle broke out.
And Kaigaku smashed the incense burner over his head.
The blow knocked Kanzaki Kumo unconscious—
—and triggered the return of Bai Yun's memories from his previous life.
Of course, after sorting through these memories, Kanzaki Kumo knew something.
None of that was the real problem.
Because the truly life-threatening moment was coming next.
At first, he had assumed he had simply been reborn in Japan at the start of the twentieth century.
But these familiar names and events made him realize the truth.
This wasn't the world he once knew.
This was the world of an anime.
A world where man-eating demons existed.
And just now—
—the incense burner that had been burning demon-repelling incense had been smashed by Kaigaku.
The culprit had already fled.
Some of the children were angrily cursing Kaigaku.
Others were worried about Kanzaki Kumo's injury.
But the last wisps of incense smoke were already fading away.
If his memory was correct…
A demon was already outside the temple.
Watching.
Salivating.
Waiting for the dozen or so "little snacks" inside.
The temple's head monk had gone out to perform a ritual with two other monks.
The only adult left behind to watch the children was Himejima Gyomei.
Within seconds of standing up, Kanzaki Kumo had already sorted out the entire situation.
Then he shouted with the loudest voice he had ever used in his life—
"Gyomei-san!! Help!!!"