This really hurts.

  She felt something rising from her stomach, and by the time it reached her mouth, it was already too late.

  Her taste buds were invaded by something very bitter.

  It tasted like she had just consumed a whole cup of liquid metal, salt, and probably copper as well. All mixed in together to create a disgusting drink.

  Even when she tried to block it with her right hand, it still spilled forth onto the washbasin, dyeing its white surface red.

  It was blood.

  A clump of her blood!

  She had vomited up large quantities of her lifeblood. It would have been better if it were just normal vomit, such as the one made up of digested food. That would have set her mind at ease, however this had her in full panic mode.

  " —ah!"

  She let out a scream. It wasn't loud enough to disturb the party happening outside the room, but it did fill the entire bathroom. Nobody had been around to see her in such a state.

  But wait, this was her party! A party held in her honor! The people outside were celebrating her! Wouldn't anything bad happening to her be considered a foul?

  Her strength was rapidly fading, even maintaining her current posture felt like a chore. The blood turned sticky in her palm, her vision blurred, and a burning sensation seared her stomach.

  "—dizzy, what's happening..? could this…be poison?"

  That confirmed it. She was in mortal danger.

  To add to that, the reflection of her face didn't seem to be faring quite well either. Staring back at her from the bathroom's mirror reflection was a woman —a real beauty with long silky black hair and golden eyes. She wore a sleek white suit, a fitting attire for today's celebration.

  It was herself—Kobayashi Yuzuriha. A woman in her early 30s and the newly appointed Chairman of Ichimonji International.

  She had worked for this company for ten years straight, climbed the corporate ladder, became its CEO, and it was only in the last that she was finally going to secure her future.

  As a fresh graduate from the prestigious Kyoto University, this was her very first and, by the looks of it, her last company. Admittedly, it wasn't exactly a cake walk to work for this company either, so if she were to die here tonight, it wouldn't bother her in the slightest.

  However, a memory of her family flashed across her mind, and her heart tightened. Yuzuriha was married to a kind and loving husband. As a symbol of their union, she bore him two adorable twins. A girl—Hana, and a boy—Haru.

  '—I…I don't want to die like this!'

  Having found her resolve, she decided to break down the effects the poison had on her. The symptoms she was feeling right now were dizziness, severe abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting blood.

  'This is arsenic.'

  Yuzuriha knew her poisons quite well, and this was no doubt arsenic, but how did she consume it exactly? Or better yet, who had fed it to her?

  She recalled the champagne toasts she had exchanged with a handful of colleagues, but who would be so envious of her to the point of wanting to kill her?

  Nobody came to mind.

  "Hel—"

  She attempted to yell for help, but immediately bit her tongue, this was accompanied by the bitter taste of blood filling up her mouth again.

  The reason for this was tied to her earlier questions. The person who fed her this poison might be lurking outside, waiting to finish the job should she show any sign of weakness.

  Her legs wobbled like jelly as she turned from the mirror and staggered towards the door, it was just a couple of steps from where she was. Maybe three or five more might do it.

  But she didn't get far.

  Realization hit when she felt the cold, hard surface against her cheek. She had collapsed to the tiled floor. The bright, sterile bathroom lights felt glaringly indifferent to her condition as they reflected off the cold white tiles that were now streaked with crimson blood.

  ?? Congratulations. You have been offered a fragment of a Legacy. Will you accept? ??

  Her strength was completely gone, and she had lost sensation in her legs.

  "Anyone, please help..! I need help!"

  Left with no choice, Yuzuriha gurgled at the top of her lungs. As if on command, the wooden door creaked open, and from it, a black suit rushed to her side.

  "—Yuzu!"

  At that point, her vision was blurred to only being able to make out the shapes of colors. But that deep voice was unmistakable.

  "J-Jun…?!"

  It was Kobayashi Junichiro —her loving husband. He immediately cradled her limp body in his arms. Brushing a strand of hair, he spoke in a rather calm, steady voice.

  "Are you ok? What happened? Wait, hold on, I'll get some help—"

  Using whatever strength she had left, Yuzuriha gripped the fabric of Junichiro's suit. That warmth of his care, the safety in his arms, she didn't want to let that go just yet.

  ?? Will you accept? ??

  It had been for a selfish and risky reason, but she was too afraid, confused, and in pain to think properly.

  "Please…don't leave, Jun"

  "Yuzu, be reasonable. If I don't get the help you need, you might die. Please let me go call someone"

  Junichiro had heeded to her selfish request and brought her closer to his chest.

  Preventing him from seeking help was indeed a very stupid thing to do.

  However…

  "Like hell you were"

  …Yuzuriha was going to die here tonight, her fate sealed the moment Junichiro first walked through that door. As much as she wanted to live, there was no way around the trap he had ensnared her in.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  This was checkmate

  Junichiro said nothing. He didn't need to. His silence spoke louder than any confession.

  ?? This is your last chance. Will you accept? ??

  Last chance? Accept what? Was her treacherous husband saying something she couldn't understand? That voice didn't sound like him though. She blinked up at him, fighting against the fog clouding her mind.

  "What's…the cover story, Jun?"

  She asked. Since he had gone through the trouble of killing her at her own party, he must have had a convincing plan. There was a moment of silence before Junichiro moved his hand on her cheek, his thumb brushing away a streak of blood.

  "It doesn't matter, it's ruined now"

  He brought his face closer to her forehead, and she could feel the warmth of his breath on her skin.

  "We had our fun, Yuzu. Honestly, I never thought we'd get this far, but we clawed our way to the top—and left plenty of bodies behind. However, now that you got what you wanted, how sure was I you weren't going to kill me next?"

  Oh right. She was a killer. Not a contracted killer, just a woman who was just really good at killing people to get what she wanted. On her climb to the top, she had used her skills to remove anyone who got in her way. And now, look where that has gotten her.

  Honestly, she had planned to get rid of Junichiro eventually. But her love for him had blinded her from striking sooner, and now she was paying the price.

  "Heh, Jun, pray I don't come back...I'll kill you if I do"

  Yuzuriha wanted those to be her final words.

  Betrayed by her husband, she felt no animosity, no resentment, no anger toward him. Just a need to correct a mistake. To get even.

  Facing death, she felt no fear. She who had caused the deaths of many, had no right to cower at her own.

  At that moment, Kobayashi Yuzuriha peacefully lost her life in the warm embrace of her husband.

  ?? Success! ??

  ?? Unknown requirements have been met. The subject has been offered the fragment of a Legacy?

  ?? In losing your life, the right to reject this offer is forfeit ??

  ?? The subject will now be granted a suitable vessel ??

  In the next instance, it was dark.

  An overarching darkness had consumed her entire body.

  But wait, what body?

  She had just died, so did she even have a body anymore?

  Anyways, it was dark and she couldn't see. She tried to move any of her limbs, but they didn't respond. Her other five senses didn't seem to be working either.

  That confirmed it, she did not have a body anymore.

  Was this what happened when people died?

  If not, time to panic.

  No, no, no, there was no time to panic. Could she even panic though?

  Her name was Kobayashi Yuzuriha, an almost successful businesswoman who had died at the hands of her beloved husband.

  Ok, she still knew who she was.

  ?? Confirmed, seeking a vessel who has met their end…Success! ??

  ?? 3 208 330 likely choices have been identified ??

  Before any of that, Yuzuriha was born to a single parent. She never knew her father, her real father! Not those stepfathers her mother kept introducing.

  She didn't know a thing about him, and all her mother could say was that he's a bastard, a good for nothing deadbeat.

  Each time Yuzuriha had asked about him, she always dismissed her, eventually she lost interest.

  Her mother, Sawatari Akemi, wasn't exactly the greatest mom in the world, or even a decent one. She was what society referred to as an 'alcoholic whore'.

  ?? Success! The name 'Sawatari' shall be used as a moniker for the Manifestation ??

  Yuzuriha had been a child, so she didn't understand what most of the words they used to call her meant, but she knew they were curses.

  Honestly, they were justified.

  ?? 197 8671 likely choices have been identified ??

  For as long as she could remember, there was never truly a place she could call home. With each stepfather she met, her environment kept changing.

  She couldn't have friends or a normal childhood.

  Sawatari Akemi was an alcoholic. There was nothing she loved more than alcohol, even her only daughter came second.

  That must have been the reason why all of her relationships never worked out.

  In her last relationship, she had stolen her boyfriend's money and blew it all on alcohol. When he found out, they were cast out into the cold night.

  The season then had been winter, so the cold was harsh.

  Shivering and sheathing with anger, she had enough of that life.

  The men her mother kept bringing into their lives, abused, undermined and in some cases, even assaulted her.

  Yuzuriha was 13 years old at the time and so, it came as a shock when she held a knife dripping with blood.

  Beneath her, was the woman she once called her mother, Sawatari Akemi. The gaping hole from her chest poured out with fresh blood and the light from her eyes had faded.

  She did it.

  A rush of emotions coursed through her. Fear, anger, confusion and guilt, but mostly, she felt satisfaction.

  The satisfaction of severing her last family tie was overwhelming. Unlike anything she had ever felt before.

  Even at such a tender age, Yuzuriha understood the necessity of removing the toxic, however, it would be a lie to say taking her mother's life didn't scar her.

  ?? 138 6295 likely choices have been identified ??

  From that point onwards, everything went uphill and downhill at the same time.

  After she was found on the streets, mourning over her mother's death, she was taken to an orphanage. She spent a few years there before being adopted by an old couple.

  They were nice people, the best thing that had happened to her.

  Yuzuriha had received a fresh start, one where she could make something of herself, maybe even become a great figure in the world.

  ?? Confirmed. 589 likely choices have been identified ??

  She grew up in a loving environment, made friends, went to university and fell in love.

  Living with them felt like a dream she didn't deserve.

  Her hands were still stained with blood after all.

  Blood stains which grew darker and more permanent with every life she took.

  Like everything, nothing wasn't without its faults.

  Nothing in life was ever easy.

  Even as an adult, the trauma from her childhood, including abuse and eventual matricide had its long-lasting effects.

  Yuzuriha was emotionally unstable, her trust issues and suppressed anger have led her to have a ton of poor relationships with people.

  Being undermined as a woman at her workplace didn't help either.

  Without allies or influence early in her career, she had faced exploitation, underestimation, prejudice, sexual harassment, financial struggles etc, the list keeps going.

  Even so, she kept pushing forward, striving to be the best and used whatever necessary methods to have her way, even killing wasn't out of the question.

  For a moment, she had seen the fruits of her hard-earned labor. Only to be taken away by the one person she loved the most.

  A fool.

  That's what she had been.

  Ah, well. No use dwelling on the past. Yuzuriha had already accepted her fate anyway.

  Right now, she had to focus on her current predicament. Especially in that strange voice she kept hearing at the back of her mind.

  Was someone else with her? If they could speak, didn't that mean she could also do the same?

  No, that didn't seem possible. She still couldn't feel her senses, except her ability to hear apparently.

  This was good. Even if she had lost her eyesight, at least she wasn't deaf.

  ?? Confirmed! ??

  There it was again!

  Though it sounded more like she was hearing it in her mind than her ears.

  She couldn't tell her current state of being. For all she knew, she could have been just a wandering consciousness lost in the abyss.

  Could that voice have been from a god?

  If that was the case, then it had a pretty weird voice.

  It sounded more digital, like that from a computer. Nothing about it screamed 'divine being casting judgement on the condemned!'.

  And for some reason, it was counting down numbers.

  Could those numbers have been the time she had been trapped here? Were the years moving a lot faster than in the regular world?

  Well then, her reincarnation wasn't that far off then.

  A second chance to live again, as a new person with no memories of her previous life.

  That would be wonderful…

  …however.

  'What if my second life is filled with pain and suffering, will I end up enduring all of that again? Then, maybe death isn't so bad. I could just stay in this nothingness forever. I'm fine with that'

  Asking for a second chance in life was the same as wanting to be saved. She didn't want to be saved, there was no redemption for someone like her.

  'But, maybe…'

  A thought flickered through her mind.

  Yuzuriha wasn't asking to be saved or anything, but maybe…

  'Maybe I could live differently, however I want. Forget the past. That would be wonderful'

  ?? Confirmed. 1 likely choice has been identified ??

  ?? Success! A suitable vessel has been identified…preparing soul transfer ??

  ?? Error! Attempt rejected. Abort ??

  ?? Reason: The vessel's inherent willpower is resisting the transfer. Override initiated…Override failed ??

  ??Reason: The emotional state of the soul is unstable. Harmonizing emotional waves…Synchronization failed??

  ?? Reason: Vessel's core essence incompatible with the subject. Adjusting parameters…Adaptation unsuccessful ??

  ?? Reason: The subjects' attachment to its former self exceeds acceptable thresholds. Severing attachments…Severance incomplete ??

  ?? Analyzing possible solutions…Solution identified. Integrating Manifestation with subject's soul to bypass rejection ??

  ?? Commencing integration…Success! The Manifestation, Sawatari, has fully integrated with subject's essence ??

  ?? Reattempting soul transfer…??

  ?? Success! Soul transfer complete. ??