I killed a villain...
The thought echoed in my head.
'But it wasn't real.'
'It was just a simulation.'
Still… it felt real.
'That was the whole point of the VR training. To make you feel like you were in the moment. To make you believe the blood, the weight, the choice—were all real.'
In real life, you can't kill a villain unless it's life or death.
'Then what? Wait until it is life or death?'
'Wait until hesitation gets you killed?'
I clenched my fists as that voice—my own, annoying, brutally honest inner voice—cut through my thoughts.
In the novel, Ryen didn't kill villains most of the time.
'So what?'
'You're not Ryen. You don't get that kind of luxury.'
'You don't have a plot armor, a destined role, or a conveniently timed rescue.'
I gritted my teeth.
The blood felt real.
Too real.
And if I kept going like this—training like this—it would become real, sooner or later.
But I didn't have a choice.
I'd already stepped onto this path.
And there's no turning back.
