Mrs. Voss apparently needs a moment to process what I just said, and things get uncomfortably quiet again. The others—especially Olivia—look as if I've just said the most terrible thing in the world, but so be it; she may hold a high position, but ultimately those are just titles that mean nothing to me. Besides, she asked if I had any questions, so I asked one.
.
"Are you saying you're rejecting the registration?"
Mrs. Voss spoke in a more serious voice.
"No, I'm just asking what would happen."
Ms. Voss looks deep into my eyes.
.
"Jin, the school enrollment isn't directly part of your punishment; however, the government has enacted a law requiring all young people...with few exceptions, to attend school. And since it was decided that you cannot attend a regular school, you are required to attend this school or one with similar values."
.
'She's speaking in that annoying tone again—can't she just shut her fucking mouth.'
"Fair enough, but I'm going to read through the paperwork before I sign it. If I find something I don't agree with, you won't get me to sign, no matter what the consequences might be."
...
...
...
Olivia was on the early shift and got off work at noon. Since I had slept in, I didn't have to wait long for her to drive me to her house.
She lives in a large house just outside the city, in the northeast. It isn't any bigger than the surrounding houses, but to me—having always lived in an apartment—it seems huge.
When I first entered the house, I was overcome with an odd feeling—something that hadn't happened to me in a long time—and wandered through the rooms with wide, curious eyes; it was all such a new experience for me, and it even helped me forget, Olivia's unbearable chatter during the drive over.
Suddenly, I have a strange feeling—I don't know what it is, but it reminds me a bit of the feeling I had after George's murder.
.
Olivia shows me the most important rooms and things in the house with an happy face, I even have my own little room upstairs. I continue walking curiously through the house, looking at every room. The house is much bigger than my old apartments, but...
"Olivia, do you live alone?"
"Um, y–you know, I used to live here with my boyfriend, but he left me two years ago and I've been living here alone since then."
"Huh? How could anyone leave someone as kind as you? Besides, you have a lot of money and are beautiful."
"Ah! It's not like that. Besides, I don't have that much money!"
"Hmm, if you say so. Then... I can be your boyfriend right?."
Olivia's face turns red.
"Ji-Jin, don't make jokes about things like that—you're still a minor and I am 23 years old!"
.
In this body, I'm only sixteen, but I was eighteen in each of my other two lives; that's not much older, yet I still have a lot of life experience. There is a five-year difference between eighteen and twenty-three, but twenty-three doesn't sound that old to me now and even though I never actually reached that age myself, my total time lived adds up to more than that.
"Olivia, our age difference doesn't matter, do you want it or not?"
"Yes, ah! no! I mean no, as a police officer, I can't do that!"
"You can't, but you want to, right?"
*blush*
"That... in any case I can't be your girlfriend, Jin."
"Hmm, if you say so..."
'Damn, I got rejected again.'
...
...
...
There are three days left until school starts; Olivia brought me the registration papers—there are a lot of them. I used to accept everything naively, but in this life, I'm going to be stubborn about the things I don't like—and so far, I've done a good job at being stubborn.
I even have my own PC in my room... The reason I have to go back to school in the first place was that I wanted information. Now I have a simple and legal way to get information's.
I also have a roof over my head and a bed; even though the room is small, it's still better than anything I had before.
Reading through the documents quickly gets boring, and with the information right in front of me, it doesn't take long before I'm sitting at the PC. I do have the memories from the previous bodys owner, but he hardly participated in society.
...
...
#warning: a lot of lore incoming#
.
I lived on Earth during my first life. Even though Earth boasts a high standard of living, my life there was miserable. In my second life, I lived on Ainon; Ainon is roughly twice the size of Earth and at a technological level comparable to the Industrial Revolution. Certain influential families wield immense power, holding more sway than the government in some regions. Life there was Just hell for me. Gaia is technologically more advanced than both Earth and Ainon and has a higher standard of living. Gaia is roughly the same size as Earth, but it consists of 50 percent land and 50 percent water, meaning there is more land area than on Earth.
Almost the entire landmass is divided into two large continents: Grand North and Grand South. As their names suggest, these two continents are located in the north and south and are connected by only a narrow land bridge—much like North and South America on Earth—though the land bridge on Gaia is significantly wider; it is the only land connection between the two continents.
Almost all of the water on Gaia is located on one side of the planet, while the landmass lies on the other. Grand North and Grand South are not far apart, and their coastlines run parallel for a long stretch; however, much of Gaia's landmass is elevated, creating steep coastal cliffs that make building harbors virtually impossible in many places.
Given these conditions, the world map looks more as if a wide canal were separating the world, with a small bridge in the middle. Many countries rely on this small bridge to trade with the other continent.
The land bridge divides the ocean into the Grand West Ocean and the Grand East Ocean; additionally, there is the Grand Ocean on the far side of the planet, which holds the vast majority of the water.
A mountain range runs along the eastern side of the land bridge,That is the reason why there is no canal connecting the Grand West Ocean and the Grand East Ocean; furthermore, the land bridge is lined with cliffs hundreds of meters high, resulting in very few harbors.
Consequently, if ship cargo needs to be transported from one ocean to the other, it must be unloaded at one of the few available ports and moved via a long, circuitous route.
The most powerful nation on Gaia is the Aetherion Empire; it is by far the largest country on the planet. Situated on Grand North near the land bridge, it possesses an extensive coastline along the Grand West Ocean and controls almost all access to the Grand East Ocean on the northern continent.
Historically, the Aetherion Empire is the first known civilization on Gaia, which is why it bears the nickname "The First Empire." The country is not a democracy; nevertheless, it enjoys a high standard of living, and its people take great pride in their nation.
The balance on Gaia is maintained by the Triune Powers—an unofficial alliance of the three most powerful nations outside "The First Empire"—which together act as a counterweight to the Aetherion Empire.
The Triune Powers consist of the Republic of Vinosha, the Elysian Dominion and the Queendom of Trey.
.
Vinosha is the second most powerful nation in the world. It is significantly smaller than the Aetherion Empire, with a much smaller population and a weaker military.
However, Vinosha possesses a decisive advantage: it controls the entire land bridge between the two continents, granting it a major strategic edge and enabling it to amass great wealth. Vinosha also holds territory on Grand South; nevertheless, its capital—Asta, where I am currently located—lies right in the middle of the land bridge.
The Elysian Dominion is located in the southwest of Vinosha and borders the Grand Wast Ocean to the north.
.
The Elysian Dominion is the only fully democratic nation among the Triune Powers. It enjoys a high standard of living and warm weather; it is a highly modern country with a strong focus on science and research.
.
The Queendom of Trey is located in the northwest of Vinosha, with the Grand West Ocean to the south.
The Queendom of Trey is very different from the other two Triune Powers.
Even though technology has advanced, Trey is ruled by a queen.
All the usual institutions exist, yet the Queen is the nation's highest authority.
But that's not the only thing that's different in Trey. The Queendom of Trey is extremely matriarchal, and males have almost no rights.