<Chapter 1> 

 
“Hey! Why did you take my toy?”

“Why is this yours? Did you write your name on it? Show me 100 pieces of proof!”

“That’s so unfair. A hundred is too much!”

“Uh, um… kids…”

“Teacher! I peed!”

“Ho-jun said he won’t play with me anymore!”

The torrent of words overwhelmed me, leaving my mind spinning.

And it wasn’t just the words. Blink for a second, and the kids were either fighting, falling over by themselves, or disappearing to who knows where.

‘Please, save me…’

I snapped back to reality and tried to assess the situation.

This was the daycare center where I was interning, and I was the trainee whose very soul was being drained.

They say life is a battlefield, and in front of these kids, all the theories I had memorized from textbooks were utterly useless.

At the end of my first day, I clung to my supervising teacher and sobbed uncontrollably.

“I-I don’t think I’m cut out to be a teacher…”

But my supervising teacher consoled me, saying that everyone feels that way at first.

“Ms. Sora, you’re going to make a great teacher. I can tell just by watching how you interact with the kids during playtime.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Of course. From now on, observe how I manage the children closely.”

I nodded earnestly.

In her fifth year as a teacher, my mentor skillfully guided the children with expertise.

‘Wow.’

Her principles were clear and firm: Always listen to both sides when there’s an issue. Be strict when necessary but never overly indulgent. Lead the class not by force but by sparking interest so the children follow willingly.

She was a master. There was so much to learn from her—more than I ever learned in school.

‘I’ll become a teacher like her someday!’

Determined, I studied her every move with hawk-like precision, filling my notebook to the brim each day.

Thanks to my dedication, I successfully completed my internship. Even the ultimate challenge, an all-day solo class, went off without a hitch.

On my last day, the kids clung to the hem of my shirt with their chubby little hands, crying and begging me not to leave.

“Teacher, don’t go. Come back tomorrow!”

“After ten more sleeps, you’ll come back, right?”

“I-I started eating cucumbers because of you, teacher…”

They handed me crudely folded paper cranes as farewell gifts.

I had tried so hard to hold it together, to show them my most mature self, but in the end, I burst into tears.

I hugged the kids and cried with them for a long while.

“Ms. Sora, come back here after you graduate. These children will grow up waiting for you,” my mentor said, patting my shoulder.

It felt like a dream. The thought of these angels being my first students!

But first, I needed to make it to graduation.

Buoyed by hope, I boarded the bus home, already brimming with plans.

‘I’ll review my childcare journal at home and prepare to become a full-fledged teacher during the rest of the break.’

I leaned against the window, reminiscing.

Reading fairy tales to energetic kids during nap time, braiding their hair neatly before pickup time…

There was even that one unforgettable moment.

It happened while I was assisting with pickup duties alongside my mentor.

[“Mom! I’m going to marry the student teacher! I like her better than you!”]

[“Ha-jun talks about you nonstop when he’s home.”]

Who would’ve thought my first proposal would come from a five-year-old?

I could still hear Ha-jun’s enthusiastic declaration and his mom’s playful scolding. The memory brought a smile to my face.

The internship had lasted only six weeks, but the memories were like a deep well—endless and overflowing.

Just then, I overheard murmuring nearby.

“Honey, my legs hurt.”

“What should we do? There’s no seat for you, my love. I wish someone would move over.”

A quick glance from the corner of my eye revealed a couple sneaking glances at me.

If they had been pregnant, injured, elderly, or with a child, I would’ve gladly given up my seat. But they weren’t.

‘I’m exhausted too, you know. I woke up at dawn to bake cookies as goodbye gifts for the kids.’

Besides, they hadn’t even asked me directly; they were just dropping hints.

So I shut my eyes and pretended not to notice.

“Kids these days are so selfish.”

And then, they started nudging my bag on the floor with their feet.

It was clear ignoring them wouldn’t end this.

“……”

I turned to look directly at the man. At first, he scowled as if to say, What are you looking at? But when I didn’t avert my gaze, he eventually looked away.

“Ahem…”

Finally, the couple moved to another seat, almost fleeing.

People like them usually back down when confronted directly. All bark and no bite.

The bus entered a tunnel, and the surroundings dimmed.

‘Perfect for a quick nap.’

I closed my eyes again as drowsiness crept in.

Just as I started nodding off, the bus became noisy.

“Ladies and gentlemen! Protect your heads! It’s dangerous!”

“We’re going to crash!”

Huh?

The bus swerved, and I gripped the handrail tightly, peering out the window.

And then…

“It’s collapsing!”

A deafening crack echoed as a massive chunk of concrete fell from the ceiling.

Thud!

“Aaaah!”

The sharp-edged concrete blocked the bus’s path.

“We have to get out now!”

“It’s even more dangerous outside!”

“Rescue teams will come. Stay calm!”

Concrete debris buried cars one by one, the injured numbers rising, and light steadily disappearing.

‘I’m scared.’

I clutched the paper crane the kids had given me like it was a talisman.

Creeeeak.

“No!”

The bus I was on wasn’t spared.

A terrifying sound came from above.

“Lord, have mercy on us…” someone prayed in a trembling voice.

I instinctively placed my bag over my head, realizing this was the end.

‘I just wanted to be a good teacher…’

The sound of concrete piling above the bus grew louder. The windows were already blocked, leaving no escape.

In the chaos of screams and sobs, I shut my eyes, trembling.

‘If there’s a next life…’

Like something out of a fantasy novel, I wished desperately for reincarnation or transmigration.

Because I didn’t want to die. Because I couldn’t accept this as the end.

Perhaps my desperation reached someone.

Crack.

Just before the concrete fell on me, all the noise vanished. Like it had evaporated.

*  *  *

“Mmm…”

I slowly opened my eyes to a noisy scene.

‘I’m alive.’

It seemed I had been rescued. That made sense—this was a large-scale disaster, and rescue operations must’ve been extensive.

‘Thank goodness I woke up after everything was over.’

If I had lain there conscious, waiting under the rubble, it would’ve been unbearable.

Amid the murmurs, I caught snippets of conversation.

“What on earth is that?”

“It looks like a human who went extinct 100 years ago.”

“A mere human as a holy relic? This is what happens when people don’t genuinely desire peace. Let’s call off the treaty.”

“Overreacting over a simple mistake, aren’t we?”

“Mistake? Do you think this can be dismissed as just a mistake?”

The conversation was oddly… hostile.

I struggled to sit up, weak and disoriented.

Surprisingly, I wasn’t in a hospital. The place I woke up in was a marble floor etched with intricate silver patterns.

‘What the…?’

But that was the least of my concerns when I looked around.

‘What the heck?! They’re not human!’

Sweat beaded on my forehead as I took in my surroundings.

Elves with sharp ears and ethereal beauty. A massive dragon radiating overwhelming power.

Desperately scanning for something familiar, I spotted someone who looked human.

‘A human! There’s a human here!’

The pale-skinned man gave me hope—until he opened his mouth and revealed sharp fangs. A vampire.

The others included merfolk, fairies with translucent wings, and beings that defied explanation.

Cosplay? Too realistic. CGI? Way too immersive.

“You’re finally awake.”

Suddenly, all eyes turned to me. My legs buckled, and I collapsed to the ground.

“We’ve been waiting. Humans are so fragile we couldn’t touch you.”

I wanted to respond, but fear froze my lips. The situation was too terrifying and overwhelming.

“Why isn’t she answering? Didn’t we cast the ‘auto-translation’ spell?”

“Hmm. Maybe the summoning process broke something.”

Their unfamiliar forms and murmured conversations filled me with dread.

‘Wait a minute. Did they say… summoning?’

Could this be… dimensional travel?

‘No way. Not reincarnation or possession, but dimensional travel?’

Reincarnation and possession come with perks, like future knowledge. Dimensional travel? Not so much. No wonder that trope died in romance fantasy.

【Compose yourself. I know this situation is confusing for humans, but this is an important matter for us as well.】

A voice resonated in my head.

Who…?

Startled, I looked around.

【I’ll explain. This is Elwindor, a continent where various races coexist. We’ve been working toward a peace treaty after a long war. So…】

Flap. A black dragon elegantly landed before me, folding its wings.

Instinctively, I realized it. That black dragon was speaking to me.

【As per the tradition, we summoned a holy relic, but instead, humans appeared.】

‘Humans.’ It was unmistakably the plural form.

I’d been too distracted by the unfamiliar creatures to notice the people around me.

Frantically, I scanned the area. All around me, countless people were sprawled unconscious.

‘They’re the same people who were on the bus with me.’

Who could’ve imagined that we’d be transported into another dimension—bus and all?

【If humans fulfill their roles, the peace treaty will proceed as planned. That way, humans might manage to keep their lives as well. Isn’t that mutually beneficial?】

W-wait a minute. Our lives?
 

<To be continued>

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