Chapter 181: Old Soul

The roar of the ocean greeted Kir's ears as he awoke to the sight of black sands and a gentle tide.

He pushed himself to sit up, looking around. In the distance, he saw a house, built into a cliff and jutting over the waters, the grass along the roaded slope swaying in the breeze. Above, the skies were blue and partially clouded.

Suddenly from his left, a voice spoke in Japanese.

"Welcome to the afterlife, Kid."

Kir looked up to find a human crouching there. He was wearing a lab coat and a one-piece skinsuit underneath but was barefoot. Glasses framed his face, which was gaunt and sleepless. His black hair was winged with grey and white, and in one hand he held a long, silvery pipe inset with cherry-stained wood - a kiseru - which was lit.

The smell of tobacco wafted over Kir, which pulled from him an odd sense of nostalgia as he spoke.

"You're the voice in my head... Who are you?" Kir answered back in Japanese.