In an old, abandoned factory on the outskirts of the city, where rust coated the iron and dust choked the light seeping through the shattered windows...
In the middle of the dim hall sat a teenage boy on a metal chair. His hands were tied behind his back, his feet bound tightly to the chair's legs. His head was tilted to the side, eyes shut, with dried blood staining the side of his face.That boy was Lucas.
In front of him stood two large men in dark clothes, their expressions hostile. Between them was a young man in his twenties, neatly styled hair and a mocking smile curled on his lips.
The young man stepped forward confidently, the echo of his boots ringing hollowly across the cracked tiles, until he stopped in front of Lucas.
"Wake up, Prince of Sorrows…" he said with sarcasm before raising his hand.
Slap!Lucas's face jerked violently.Another slap! This time on the other cheek.
Lucas gasped sharply, his eyes flying open wide from the pain and confusion. He breathed heavily, blinking in a daze.
"Where... am I?" he muttered, his voice hoarse as if his throat was full of dust.
Lucas's POV
My head felt like it was drowning… as if I were floating in a sea of fog. I didn't know how much time had passed, but something was coming back…Pain. That was the first thing I felt. Not sharp, but heavy.Then I heard distant footsteps…
Slap.I felt it before I heard it.I opened my eyes.
Dim light… a corroded metal ceiling, rust, cobwebs.I tried to move… but my arms wouldn't respond. Something was binding me.I looked down… my feet were tied too. The chair was cold. Hard.
"Where am I..."
I saw them after a few seconds. Two bulky men standing beside a guy who looked in his twenties. His eyes had that irritating gleam… the gleam of either arrogance or madness. I couldn't tell.
He smirked and said,"Welcome back to reality... We have so much to talk about."
My throat was dry… my tongue heavy. But my eyes said everything.
Fear? Maybe a little.Anger? A lot.But more than anything, I felt—Lost.
Who were they? Why was I here? What did they want?
The whole scene was blurry… but something deep inside told me this night… would not end easily.
The young man leaned in, hands in his pockets, his face now inches from mine. He smiled with mockery and said:"Do you know why you're here?"
His voice was too calm… like it was all a game to him.I didn't answer. My eyes were still searching their faces—for logic, for a reason, for anything to tie this madness to the real world.
He circled me, still smirking:"No? No problem… we'll give you time to think. But believe me, Lucas, you're important to us."
A cold shiver crept down my neck.Important? Me?The boy ignored by his father, forgotten by his mother, invisible to everyone? Why me?
I swallowed, barely, and muttered:"If this is about ransom… I'm worth nothing. No one will care."
"Ransom?" he laughed as if it were a joke, then glanced at one of the men behind him.
"No, Lucas... what we want isn't money."
What do they want from me? And why now?Why... just when I thought I didn't need anyone… does someone show up claiming I'm 'important'?
I looked at their faces again.They were empty… yet filled with something I couldn't grasp.
What do you want from me?
The young man chuckled darkly, then gave me a look of pity masked with rage:"We? We want nothing, Lucas. Don't fool yourself."
He stepped forward, gestured to himself and then to the two men behind him:"We're just pawns. Moved, used… discarded when our time runs out."
He paused for a moment, then smiled bitterly:"And now... you're one of us."
His words were heavy. But I wasn't focused on them.
I was focused on something else.
Slowly, without them noticing, I was twisting my left wrist, feeling the rope fibers loosen slightly...
Slow breathing technique. Show no pain. No tension.Just time.Buy time.
I whispered,"You're playing a game you don't understand…"
He raised an eyebrow."Oh? And do you?"
I smiled. Half a smile—not mocking, but solid with confidence."At least I know when to get out of it."
Just then, I felt a slight give in the rope.
I didn't move yet. I waited... for the right moment.The guy turned away, speaking to one of his men.Perfect.
Suddenly, I jerked my wrist hard—swift, sharp, painful—Snap.
The rope broke. My hand was free—then the second.
"Shit!" shouted one of the men, but it was too late.
I sprang forward like a storm, my face grim, eyes sharp. No thought—just survival.I kicked one of them in the chest—he flew back, crashing into the metal wall, unconscious.
The other lunged at me, but a clean punch to the jaw sent him reeling.
The air was thick. Sweat dripped from my brow. But I didn't stop.I ran for the iron door—
Just as I reached for the handle…
He appeared.
The young man. Not panting. Not angry.Just… smiling.
In a flash, he grabbed my throat, lifted me off the ground, then threw me into metal crates.
"Think you're in an action movie?" he said, walking toward me, calm steps."You're nothing. Just a possibility in a bigger game," he added, madness glinting in his eyes.
What nonsense is he talking about? I don't care. I'm getting out.
I tried to rise—But a kick to my stomach slammed me down. Then a slap smashed my head into the floor.
He grabbed my hair, dragging me across the ground.
"You know?" he whispered in my ear,"I was like you. Rebellious. Stubborn. Thought the world would kneel for me…But it crushed me. Just like it'll crush you."
Then he flung me again—my back slammed into the wall. I collapsed, broken.
My body was done. Every part hurt. Blood dripped from my forehead, my vision blurred, my heart racing…
But I was still conscious enough to hear his footsteps drawing closer.
He crouched down, his twisted smile back, and whispered:
"Good luck on your next journey…Because you'll need it.Hahaha!"
His laugh wasn't real—it was death's whistle. Or madness wearing a human mask.
He stood, pulled a black pistol from under his coat.
His face was momentarily serious—but the madness still burned in his eyes.
"Oh, right… I forgot to introduce myself."
He tilted his head, like talking to an old friend:
"My name is Damian.Remember that name… if you want to survive."
Then without hesitation—
He pointed the gun at Lucas's forehead.
Silence fell.
Boom.
Lucas died.
Luka POV
Is this your life, Lucas...?Or… will it become our life?
How similar we are. Heh.The words echoed in the void, in a voice with no body—just a drifting awareness.
Luca floated above the corpse, watching from above. The lifeless body… the blood… the cold factory floor.Everything seemed far away, like a nightmare with no end.
He wasn't scared. Just… heavy.
Then suddenly, he was pulled—as if an invisible hand yanked him away.
Falling.Into a place so dark...
It wasn't just the absence of light—it was as if light never existed.No ground. No sky. No direction.Just him.
And there, Lucas stared into the void.
Lucas's POV
So... I really died.
That's fine. I have nothing to regret.
Is this the afterlife? Just endless empty darkness?
I told myself that—until I heard a sudden sound.
Ding.
What the hell is that noise?
A transparent screen appeared in front of me:
---- Loading Destiny System ---- 1%
I didn't know how long passed… here, there was no sense of time.No feeling. No smell. No sound.Nothing.
Just darkness… and that slow-moving screen.
And during that time, I began to see flashes of memories… not mine.
At first, I thought I was going insane.
But gradually… I started to recognize them.
They were memories of a character from a game I used to play with Mark…
An RPG set in a world of noble families, politics, wars… all that.
But this game was different.
The characters were deep. The side stories often more powerful than the main plot.
The best part? You could play as any character.
But there was always one "main" hero: Eden.
And now… I was seeing the memories of Luca de Verg.
That bastard.
The character I hated more than any other.
At the start, if you messed with him, his grandfather—one of the game's strongest characters—would kill you.
If you let him live… he'd become a nightmare.
He gets kidnapped, experimented on, and turned into a weapon for the enemy.
And in the end… he's the reason the main heroine dies—his maid and the former heir to the Hydrin family, one of the great northern houses.
I saw him as foolish. Annoying. A dramatic obstacle…
…Until I gained his memories.
Lucas's POV
I don't know how long passed.
All I saw was that screen, slowly reaching—
----------------100%----------------
Destiny System Loaded.
You have died… but you have another chance.
Do you want to merge?
Your memories and soul fragments will be merged with Luca de Verg.
[Yes / No]
I stared at the screen.
[No]
I pressed it without hesitation.
I didn't want anything. No second chance. Just… peace.
But the screen didn't disappear.
Are you sure?[Yes]
I pressed again, stubbornly, and said:
"Screw you… this is my life. I just want to rest."
But the response wasn't what I expected.
Error.Rejection not allowed
As punishment, you will remain in this void until you accept.
It felt like the air disappeared.I sighed, looked at the endless void, and started walking...
No goal. No direction.Just endless footsteps in the nothing.
Time passed… hours? Days? Months?
Nothing changed. The same silence. The same darkness.
Until…
Ding.
The screen appeared again.
But this time, it didn't ask a question.
It showed a scene.
A sunset bathed the sky in a pale orange. The wind whispered through the trees, brushing the leaves as if speaking to sleeping souls.
A girl stood by a grave. Her face soft, mature—still carrying traces of the child she once was.
It was Mia.
In one hand, she held white flowers. In the other, a small child… with dark brown hair and bright eyes that resembled only one person.
Behind her stood Mark, his hand gently on her shoulder.
Mia knelt, placed the flowers, smiled softly, and said—
Mia paused, then took a deep breath and continued:
"It's been ten years... ten years since you left."
She looked at the gravestone and gently brushed her hand across it.
"I've grown up. I'm not the little girl who used to hide behind you anymore."
She smiled, her eyes shimmering:
"I achieved my dream, Lucas. I became a lawyer, just like I always told you I would."
Then she looked at the child in her arms and said:
"And this... this is Lucas. We named him after you. You know, he's a lot like you—stubborn, clever, and always defending the weak."
She laughed a little as she looked at him:
"Sometimes I feel like you came back to us through him."
Mark stepped forward and sat beside her, placing his hand over hers.
"Mark opened a small restaurant. Not fancy, but full of love."
She looked back at the grave, tears gathering in her eyes:
"Mark and I... we fell in love and got married."
Then, in a trembling voice, she whispered:
"You'd laugh if you saw how he confessed to me."
She chuckled, then silence returned for a moment.
"I hope... I really hope you've found peace, Lucas."
She placed her hand gently on the gravestone and said:
"We never forgot you. And we never will."
They stood quietly and began to walk away.
But Mia turned back for one last glance and smiled.
"Goodbye, brother... I'll see you in my dreams."
Lucas smiled.A smile that didn't carry pain this time, but pure warmth… and sincerity.
"So… you became a lawyer, Mia,"he said, feeling something bloom in his chest.
Then he chuckled softly:
"And that idiot really confessed to you…? My god, how did he even do it?"
He shook his head, whispering to himself:
"I'm truly happy for you, Mia… happier than I've been in a long, long time."
He didn't know how long passed—the time here wasn't counted by minutes or hours, but by the heartbeats passing through his soul.
Then suddenly—
The scene changed again.
This time, it wasn't peaceful.
It opened to a new vision.
But it wasn't blurry…
It was crystal clear.
And painful.
He saw his father standing there, in front of a simple grave that bore his name:
"Lucas Alaric."
The man approached, hands in his pockets, his face pale, as if exhaustion had carved extra years into his features.
"Hello, Lucas…"he said with a broken voice, but there was a faint warmth in it. Very faint.
Then he gave a sad, sarcastic smile:
"I know… you probably don't want to see me."
He paused, sighed, and continued—his voice mixing confession with regret:
"I came to say… I'm sorry.Sorry for everything I did to you. And to Mia.Sorry I wasn't the father you needed.When you were gone… I finally woke up."
He placed his hand gently on the gravestone, as if patting a shoulder that no longer existed.
"I got remarried.She helped me see the truth…Helped me realize how far I'd fallen.How blind I was."
Then he smiled, tears glistening in his eyes:
"Oh, and Mia… Mia became a lawyer.I'm proud of her. So proud.She visits me every week…We have dinner together every Saturday night."
He fell silent for a while, then whispered:
"I wish you were with us, my son…"
"And I'm proud of you, too, son," he finally said—the words Lucas had always wanted to hear when he was alive.