At five years old, Tsukishima Akihiro now spent his days attending a preschool called Tachibana Bloom Preschool, located in the center of Tokyo. His parents had enrolled him to help develop his social and mental skills, believing it would benefit his growth. To him, however, it felt completely unnecessary since he still retained the mind of his seventeen-year-old self from his past life.
Even so, he had no intention of revealing the truth about his reincarnation. Telling his parents that he was already mentally developed would only create problems he could not explain. Because of that, he chose to quietly play along and act like a normal child.
At the same time, Akihiro made a firm decision not to interfere too much with the flow of events. He planned to wait until the main storyline of Psychic Love began before making any major moves. From what he remembered, that point would arrive when he entered high school.
The year the story began was 2085, which also happened to be the year he would turn fifteen. Knowing this gave him a clear timeline, allowing him to plan ahead carefully. For now, all he could do was observe and prepare.
Lost in thought, Akihiro sat quietly as he considered what actions he should take in the future. His mind wandered through different possibilities, trying to form a solid plan. However, before he could think further, something unexpected happened.
Two large hands suddenly lifted him off the ground.
His body wobbled in surprise as panic quickly set in. The sudden movement caught him completely off guard, leaving him unable to react immediately. Then, a bright and overly cheerful voice reached his ears.
"Aki-chan, why the long face?"
Akihiro turned his head and was greeted by a young man with golden hair and bright jade eyes. The man had a naturally handsome appearance, paired with an energetic expression that made him stand out. He wore a pink sweater along with an apron decorated with cute chibi characters.
This was Tachibana Kyle, a half-English and half-Japanese teenager working at the preschool. According to what Akihiro had learned, his mother had come to Japan during a vacation and ended up meeting his father. That meeting eventually led to his birth, tying him to the Tachibana family that owned the preschool.
Akihiro immediately began struggling in his grasp, moving his arms and legs wildly as if trying to escape. "Tachibana onii-san, let go of me, please," he said, doing his best to sound like a normal child.
When he had first arrived, Akihiro had addressed him formally using only his surname. That decision had quickly backfired, as Kyle insisted on being called Tachibana onii-san instead. Refusing had only resulted in being relentlessly cuddled for an entire day, leaving him no choice but to give in.
Hearing him say it now, Kyle reacted dramatically as if struck by overwhelming emotion. "Aki-chan, you are way too precious to let go of," he said while pulling him closer. He pressed Akihiro against his chest, acting as if he were on the verge of tears.
Before Akihiro could react, Kyle leaned in and started rubbing his cheek against his soft face. The contact felt suffocating, completely ignoring any sense of personal space. From Akihiro's perspective, it was nothing short of a nightmare.
He pushed against Kyle's face with all his strength, trying to create even a small distance between them. The situation was embarrassing, especially considering that he was mentally older than the person treating him like this. Preserving what little dignity he had left became his top priority.
Kyle, who was currently fifteen, continued to act without restraint. His carefree attitude made it clear that he saw nothing wrong with his behavior. After all, the preschool belonged to his grandfather, which allowed him to act however he pleased.
Just as Akihiro was about to lash out further, one of the older staff members spoke up. "Kyle, please be careful with Aki-chan," she said, her tone polite but firm. "It is not good for a child to be constantly upset."
Kyle froze for a moment before letting out an awkward laugh. He quickly placed Akihiro back on the ground and bowed slightly. "Sorry, onee-san. I will be more careful next time," he said while scratching his head.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Akihiro wasted no time. He quickly ran away, putting as much distance between himself and Kyle as possible. His small legs moved as fast as they could, driven by pure determination.
He headed toward a group of children playing nearby, blending into the crowd. From experience, he knew that Kyle would hesitate to act freely in front of others. Using them as a shield was the safest option until it was time to go home.
Now hidden among other children, surrounded by toys and stacked boxes, Akihiro finally had a moment to think. His mind returned to the problem he had been trying to solve earlier. The question of what he should do in the future still remained unanswered.
He was not a chosen protagonist or someone with a special background. In this world, he was simply an ordinary boy born into a normal family. That reality made his situation far more complicated than he initially expected.
How am I supposed to change the fate of the twelve female leads? he wondered.
Even if he knew what would happen, this was no longer just a story. There was no guarantee that things would unfold in his favor. Without the safety of a narrative, failure was a very real possibility.
The original webnovel had over two thousand chapters, filled with countless conflicts, disasters, and unpredictable events. Romance may have been the central theme, but it was far from the only challenge present. The world itself was dangerous, regardless of the story's direction.
Thinking about it all left him feeling slightly overwhelmed. Still, he knew that doing nothing would lead to the same disappointing outcome he once hated. If he wanted to change anything, he needed power.
If I can awaken psychic abilities, I might actually stand a chance, he thought.
That idea gave him a small sense of direction. However, a more important question quickly followed. How exactly was someone like him supposed to awaken psychic powers?
***
To understand how psychic powers worked, we first needed to understand the history created by the author of Psychic Love. According to the story, everything began ten thousand years ago when a massive meteor struck the Earth. The impact marked the origin of all supernatural phenomena in this world.
The meteor itself was described as enormous, with a size comparable to Mount Everest. Its descent brought unimaginable destruction, releasing shockwaves that devastated everything in its path. The atmosphere was thrown into chaos, and almost all life forms at the time were wiped out.
Plants, animals, and even early humans were unable to survive the catastrophe. The scale of destruction suggested that the planet would need millions of years to recover. However, that expectation was proven completely wrong.
The meteor contained something unknown, something that no one in the story and even the author could fully explain. Probably because the loser author couldn't be bothered explaining his own world logic. Within just one hundred years, the Earth began to recover at an impossible rate. New forms of plant life appeared, growing larger and more vibrant than before.
Entire ecosystems that had been destroyed were restored, and in many cases, they evolved into something entirely different. Animals and humans alike underwent changes, adapting to a world that no longer followed normal rules. This rapid transformation reshaped the planet into what it had become in the present.
At a molecular level, the genes of every living being were altered by the meteor's influence. This change allowed them to interact with a new form of energy, later known as psychic energy. Through this energy, humans gained the ability to perform supernatural feats.
Animals were affected in the same way, leading to drastic evolutionary changes. Some grew stronger, while others developed abilities beyond natural limits. These changes gave rise to creatures that could manipulate psychic energy in ways similar to humans.
The ecosystems themselves also played a role, continuously producing psychic energy as a result of their altered state. This created an environment filled with an abundant and nearly limitless energy source. It became the foundation for all psychic abilities in the world.
In addition to physical changes, the meteor also gave rise to spiritual phenomena. Entities such as spirits, ghosts, and other supernatural beings began to appear. These were not bound by physical forms, making them even more mysterious and dangerous.
This marked the complete origin of psychic powers within the world. Everything that existed had been influenced in some way by the meteor's arrival. From living beings to the environment itself, nothing remained untouched.
The special genetic trait that allowed humans to use psychic energy was known as the Origin Gene. Every person possessed it, but not everyone could awaken it. For most people, the gene remained dormant throughout their lives.
Because of this, certain conditions were required to activate it. Some individuals awakened their abilities through extreme trauma or life-threatening situations. These experiences pushed their willpower to its limits, triggering the hidden potential within them.
Even then, such awakenings were rare and unpredictable. Only a small number of people could successfully gain powers through those circumstances. The process was dangerous, with no guarantee of success.
There were also powerful families and clans with strong genetic traits. Their lineage made it highly likely for their children to awaken psychic abilities naturally. In many cases, their powers manifested without the need for any external trigger.
Aside from them, there were rare individuals who awakened their abilities on their own. Even without belonging to a special family, some people could activate their Origin Gene naturally. These cases were uncommon, but they did exist.
As Akihiro reviewed all of this information, a single question formed in his mind. Could he awaken his own dormant Origin Gene? The thought lingered, bringing both hope and uncertainty.
Right now, his best option seemed to be forcing an awakening through extreme circumstances. However, the idea itself was risky and difficult to achieve. He had no clear way of encountering such a situation safely.
While he remained deep in thought, a voice called out to him from across the room. "Aki-chan, your mother is here," an older caretaker said, waving slightly to get his attention. The call pulled him out of his thoughts.
Akihiro stood up slowly, brushing off his clothes as he prepared to leave. "I'm coming," he said, keeping his tone calm as he walked forward. Despite everything, his mind continued to work.
He would find a way to awaken his power. One way or another.