The 99th Reincarnation
This time, Von chose differently.He wouldn't gather allies.He wouldn't rally anyone.Not this time.
As soon as he stepped out of his room, his mother's voice called from the kitchen.
"Von! Where are you off to again? Would it kill you to help with the chores?"
Von's eyes were hollow.He didn't answer.
His mother let out a tired sigh."It's never easy raising a kid alone…"
But Von had heard those words 98 times.
He simply walked out the door—no goodbyes, no promises.
At the end of the street, just before the crossroad, it happened.The sky split.A void portal tore reality open.Chaos erupted—buildings cracked, screams rang out, the air turned black.
Von didn't flinch.He kept walking.He didn't look back.
He had saved her 98 times.This time, he wouldn't interfere.Let fate decide.
He walked, and walked, and walked—until even he didn't know where he was.Fire, rubble, screaming. It was all noise now.
He didn't care anymore.
Until—a tap on his back.
He turned.A girl stood there. A stranger.
He didn't recognize her from any of the past lives.And yet—his heart skipped.Something about her felt off. Not bad… but not right either.
"Are you Von? Von Erminsul?" she asked.
Von stiffened. She knew his name.He didn't know hers.But the way she looked at him, like she knew—every version of him—it sent a strange chill down his spine.
"...Who are you?" Von asked, uneasy.
She grinned. "Let's just say… I'm like you, Mr. Reincarnate."
Those words made something loosen in his chest.After all this time, all these lives—someone finally understood.
The girl smiled again, brighter now.
"I'm Lumine. Lumine Seraphine."
---
Even though Von had decided not to gather anyone from his past lives, he made an exception for Lumine.
There was something about her—timid, almost childlike at times—but then suddenly mature, steady. When Von was overwhelmed by memories from his previous lives, it was Lumine who led the way forward.
Over the next few months, through battles and close calls, she stayed by his side.And because of her—somehow—Wendy, Elias, and Joseph found their way back to him too.
Von never asked how.But deep down, he suspected Lumine had always known more than she let on.
At first, even though she acted like she knew him, Lumine kept her distance.But as time passed and they fought demons together—bled, burned, laughed—they grew close.Really close.
One night, they camped in a forest nestled in the Tibat Mountains.Everyone else had gone to sleep, their breathing steady under the stars.
But Von couldn't rest.
That woman.The one who killed him in every single life.She haunted him.Where is she now?Is she coming?
He glanced toward the camp. His friends—his family—slept peacefully.Would they die again?
He clenched his fists.
Then, soft footsteps behind him.
It was Lumine.
"Hey," she said gently. "Can't sleep?"
"There's a lot on my mind," Von admitted.
"Want some company?"
He didn't answer, but didn't push her away either.
Lumine sat beside him. For a moment, there was only the sound of wind rustling the trees.
"What are you thinking about?" she finally asked.
Von stared at the sky. "You know about my reincarnations, right?"
She nodded.
"Then maybe you know this too… There's a woman. In every life. She's the one who ends it. No matter how hard I try… she always finds me." He glanced sideways at Lumine. Her expression had shifted—she looked pale.
She knew something.
"Do you—"
Before he could finish, she cut him off. "By the way, have you ever seen these before?"She held out her left hand. On each finger, Roman numerals were etched like faint scars.
Von narrowed his eyes. "I've… never seen that."
"These are called blessings," Lumine said, her voice quiet. "From a certain god. But honestly, they're not real blessings. Just chains pretending to be gifts."
Von stayed silent.
She continued, "I was born from a timeline you aren't aware of… yet."
"…A timeline I'm not aware of?" Von echoed, confused.
Lumine reached out, gently cupping his face.
"Yeah," she whispered. "And…"
Suddenly, without warning, she pushed Von to the ground and put him down on the ground with her body.
"And you have no ideas that I love you."