Chapter 1 : Adventure Level 1 (1)

It seems I’ve been reincarnated.
And my gender has changed.
One day, I woke up in the body of a girl.
It didn’t feel particularly strange, and the girl’s memories and emotions were perfectly intact, so it felt more like reincarnation than possession.
To be precise, it was as if my consciousness had matured overnight.
My past life’s consciousness—that of an adult male—had merged with the foundation of my current life.
Since my past life’s influence is dominant, it’s strong, but I can’t say the foundation of my current life isn’t there.
It’s a relief that I don’t feel like a stranger toward my parents.

I straightened the blanket and went into the bathroom to wash my face.
This room is my own.
My current self, now old enough for elementary school, had strongly demanded privacy, and my parents responded by furnishing an empty room.
Thanks to that, I’ve had my own space for a few weeks now.
It was quite exciting.
But thinking about it now, the fact that there was an empty room—not even used for storage—seems suspicious.
They probably intended it as a child’s room all along.
It feels like my parents might have subtly guided my current self.
When I was wondering what to read in the study, Mom came over and recommended a popular book about privacy.

I washed my face and changed out of my pajamas.
I hadn’t noticed until now, but my parents must have been considerate because the sink was placed low.
It’s convenient.
As I was about to leave the room, a painting hanging on one wall caught my eye.
It was a chaotic mess of colorful paint splattered everywhere.
The artist? My current self.
A few days ago, wanting to make the room more “mine,” I took down the original painting and hung this one up.
I was proud of it then, but looking at it now, I have absolutely no talent for art.
My past self wasn’t interested in art either, so I don’t really have a standard for judgment.
It’d be better to redecorate.
The original painting wasn’t great either, so buying a new one might be best.
“Ah, but that costs money.”
I immediately thought about spending money without considering the cost.
My sense of money feels off.
Hmm? Is this the influence of my current life?
On second thought, it’s better to leave the painting as it is.
My current self decorated the room properly.
It’s right to hang my own painting in my own room.

Having roughly made up my mind, I left the room.
“Hm? You’re up early.”
Mom was reading on the living room sofa, so I went over and sat next to her.
Then, she suddenly grabbed my sides, lifted me up, and placed me on her lap.
“What?”
“Want a cookie?”
“Yeah.”
Mom brought a cookie from the table right up to my mouth.
I ate it.
It’s moist, savory, and delicious.
Is it homemade? I don’t remember seeing Mom bake, so they must be store-bought.
I glanced at the clock; it was around 9:20.
Didn’t Mom just say I woke up early?
“Mom, 9:20 isn’t early, is it?”
She laughed.
“It’s early for my little princess, isn’t it? What time do you usually wake up?”
My current self never bothered checking the time upon waking.
Usually, Mom would wake me up, and then we’d eat lunch—that was the daily routine.
“I see. So, what time do you plan to wake up?”
“I’m going to eat breakfast.”
Mom smiled.
“Then I’ll have to prepare more for breakfast from now on?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”

As I answered and ate a few more cookies, I got thirsty.
I picked up the coffee cup on the table.
Mom gently took it away and went to the kitchen, saying she’d bring juice.
Not even letting me drink coffee—treating me completely like a child.
Well, I am a child…
For now, I am indeed a child.
Maybe because of my current life’s influence, it doesn’t feel cringey or awkward.
It feels natural.
However, continuing to be treated like this could be problematic.
If this becomes a habit, laziness might set in.
Then I might not be able to properly utilize the advantage of remembering my past life.
Although it is very comfortable.
Maybe I’ll just relax for now.

I looked at the book Mom was reading: The Reality of Child Rearing with CAT Education.
It’s a parenting book.
Wouldn’t it lose its meaning if the subject of the parenting reads it? It doesn’t seem like something to read out of boredom.
I should just turn on the TV.

“Haneul, in a few weeks, Dad is planning to meet a friend. Want to come along?”
Dad approached me while I was reading in the study and asked.
“Why would I?”
“Dad’s friend has a child who’s the same age as my daughter. Wouldn’t it be fun to go together and make a friend? What do you think?”
A friend? A kindergartner? That sounds really boring.
“I’ll think about it.”
Even after hearing my answer, Dad lingered nearby.
I waved my hand dismissively, signaling him to leave me alone.
Why is he staring while I’m reading? It’s embarrassing.
I underlined a key term in the textbook I was reading with a ballpoint pen.
The textbook was on business administration.
I understand the content, but wouldn’t others just see a kindergartner struggling with a book they can’t comprehend?
Imagining it in detail makes me feel even more embarrassed.
I should have read in my room…
I originally planned to read in my room.
But since Dad recommended this specific book, his subtle insistence led me to read it in the study.
Next time, I’ll just ignore Dad and read in my room.

In my past life, I finished my undergraduate studies and continued studying sporadically even while working.
Yet, the reason I’m reviewing the basics now is because a problem arose.
It happened just a few days after I became aware of my past life.
After spending a few days relaxing and doing nothing, I decided it was time to start preparing for the future.
So, I decided to make a life plan.
While reading and contemplating whether to study business administration again or learn a different field, I discovered something strange.
My past life and current life are not in the same world.
It’s a parallel dimension, so to speak.
I realized this on the day I regained my past memories: major electronic brands were unfamiliar, and there was some kind of pattern in the sky—unclear whether it was text or an image.
Setting aside the electronics, when I asked my parents why the sky was like that, they said it was an unexplained natural phenomenon.

This subtle gap between my past and present lives had a troublesome effect on academics.
It wasn’t that the theoretical structure of disciplines had changed, but some terminology was slightly different.
Academic terms can be divided into names and concepts; for some, the concept was the same in both lives, but the name was different.
Typical examples involved scholars’ names or historical cases.
In cases like Taylorism or Fordism, where the scholar or case is closely tied to the term, the names differed between my past and present lives.
This wasn’t true for everything—only a small number of terms were different.
But even if it was just a few, encountering unfamiliar terms unexpectedly while reading was quite bewildering.

So, I decided I needed to read some introductory undergraduate textbooks and looked for them.
But, as expected, the names of the textbooks had also changed, so I couldn’t tell which ones were good.
While wondering what to do, I remembered Dad worked in business, so I asked him for help.
Dad, who happened to be choosing a book in the study, easily pulled out a business administration textbook for me.
And when I was about to take it to my room, he stopped me and suggested I read it in the study.
His reason was that he could help if I encountered anything I didn’t understand.
But I think Dad had another motive…
His silly grin definitely looked like he had ulterior motives.

Cha Haneul underlined another term she found.
Then, she glanced at her father standing beside her.
Dad was taking pictures of her with his smartphone.
“Did you find something you don’t know?”
He had a goofy smile on his face the whole time.
Why is he taking pictures? It’s embarrassing.
I jumped up and snatched the smartphone.
A picture of me as a kindergartner scribbling in a textbook.
I can’t just let such an embarrassing record exist.
After snatching the phone, I saw it wasn’t the camera screen but the KakaoTalk screen.
The recipient was Mom.
“The picture came out nice, right?”
Dad leaned in close and asked.
In the KakaoTalk picture, a little girl with apple hair was holding a pen and reading a book.
…It’s cute.
It came out better than I thought.
“Anyway, don’t take pictures without permission.”
I gave the smartphone back to Dad.
Just then, maybe a message came from Mom, because Dad said it was time for dinner.
“What’s for dinner tonight?”
“He said it’s Dakbokkeumtang (Spicy Braised Chicken).”
“Sounds delicious.”
I quickly put the book away and left the study.

When I went to the kitchen, Mom was scooping rice.
Dad took side dishes out of the refrigerator and placed them on the table.
Cha Haneul sat down and arranged the tableware.
Mom sat down and spoke.
“So, did you decide to go?”
“Go where?”
“Meeting Mom’s friend’s family in three weeks.”
“You mean Dad’s friend?”
“That’s right, and also Mom’s friend.”
Cha Haneul glanced at Dad, who was still scooping rice, and spoke.
“Are you going too, Mom?”
“Yes.”
“So it’s a family meeting another family.”
“That’s right. There’s also a friend the same age as our daughter.”
“We’ve never met, so we’re not friends.”
Mom tilted her head.
“Maybe you don’t remember because you were too young? We met them once before.”
I thought hard, but I don’t remember.
“When did we meet?”
Dad answered as he sat down.
“Probably when you were three.”
“Yes, when you were three.”
“When I was three? …Like, three years old?”
Mom nodded.
I’m currently six years old, so that was three years ago.
I feel like I might remember, but also maybe not.
“I don’t remember.”
“Then you can become friends this time.”
Mom said, picking up her chopsticks.
Despite saying that, it seemed like Mom and Dad were more excited about it, so I just nodded.

As the day of the trip approached, Mom and Dad busily packed their bags.
Since it’s February and there aren’t many suitable places, it seems Dad borrowed a pension (rental cabin) from someone he knows.
Mom was folding clothes and putting them into a bag, so I squatted down next to her.
“Aren’t we packing our camping gear?”
“Some things are already at the pension, and the friends decided to prepare anything else needed.”
Mom looked happy as she spoke.
She said “friend,” but they must be really close friends.

The day arrived.
In the underground parking lot, Cha Haneul followed behind her parents, who were pulling suitcases.
After walking a bit, Dad approached a van she hadn’t seen before.
Then, as if showing off, he held up the smart key and pressed a button firmly.
The van’s engine started, and the headlights flashed.
Dad glanced back at Cha Haneul with an expectant expression.
…?
What does Dad want right now?
Mom opened the car door and put a suitcase inside.
Even then, Dad kept staring.
When I continued to meet his gaze, Dad subtly looked away.
“Dad, what do you want?”
Mom, who was putting the rest of the luggage in, held the car door and chuckled.
Dad mumbled an answer and got into the driver’s seat.
Mom and Cha Haneul also got in the car, and they departed immediately.
What did he really want?
Was he expecting me to be amazed by the remote start? I’ve already seen that in this life.
Ah, I thought of something plausible.
“Where did the chauffeur go?”
“Dad gave him a vacation. Today, Dad is the driver.”
Mom answered.
Dad showed no reaction, focusing on driving.
That wasn’t it, apparently.
I poked Mom in the seat next to me, making her lean down, and whispered in her ear.
“What was Dad expecting just now?”
Mom glanced sideways at Dad and whispered back.
“It’s because Dad has this dream of riding in a van with his family.”
“So? What did he want me to do?”
“Uh…”
Mom hesitated, then leaned close to my ear and whispered as if it were very important.
“Mom doesn’t know either.”
…
Looking at Dad, I saw him glancing this way through the rearview mirror while driving.
He must be curious about what we’re whispering.
I nodded at Mom’s unhelpful answer.
Then, imitating Mom, I whispered back as if it were important.
“I see.”

The car kept moving.
While I was looking at the sky pattern they called a natural phenomenon, we entered an apartment complex.
Mom adjusted Cha Haneul’s scarf and prepared to get out.
Looking out the window, it was an ordinary apartment building—the kind where most residents likely rent rather than own.
This is unexpected.
My current family is quite wealthy.
My parents hide our family’s situation, maybe thinking it’s bad for a child’s upbringing, so I don’t know the full details, but it’s clear we’re well-off.
Our home is a high-rise luxury apartment, we have a chauffeur, Mom is a full-time homemaker, and while I don’t know Dad’s exact job, he clearly holds a high position.
Since they are my parents’ friends, I expected them to be in a similar situation, but apparently not.
Maybe they knew each other from school?

The car parked, and we got out.
As I followed my parents, a family of three emerged from the apartment entrance.
My parents hurried over and helped them with their luggage.
They happily exchanged greetings.
As expected, my parents are enjoying this more than I am.
There was a boy who had been staring intently this way, so I met his gaze.
He had a dazed expression.
“Hi?”
…Huh?
The boy hesitated before continuing.
“You… uhm… you’re pretty.”
Cha Haneul tilted her head.
“I know.”