A soul-tearing scream came from the wife as the soldiers yanked her by the hair. Her eyes widened with horror as she begged her husband for help — but Ryoma could do nothing but watch, trapped in his weakness. Their eyes met one last time, a look full of pleading… before the sword fell, and her head flew through the air, crashing to the ground. Her body collapsed slowly, blood pouring out like a waterfall, staining the ground, her arms stretching out as if reaching for her children even in death.

A heavy silence fell… but it didn’t last.

The children screamed in terror, their small bodies trembling as they backed away. One of them clung to his father’s leg, eyes full of tears, begging him to protect them.

“Daddy! Don’t let them take us!”

Ryoma looked at Artel with burning anger, and screamed in a choked voice:

“You… Artel! Tell me… did I ever do anything to you? Why do you smile while murdering my wife?”

Artel laughed softly, a whisper of fury only Ryoma could hear — like the hiss of a demon:

“You think you’ve done nothing… but fifteen years ago, Ryoma, you murdered my family in cold blood.”

Ryoma's eyes widened in shock. I killed his family? That means… he has a right to revenge. But why? Why did I kill them? Damn it… I can’t move. His tongue failed him. It wasn’t just fear or anger… but a deep feeling of empathy for Artel — yet he couldn’t stop him. Artel was now killing Ryoma’s family in cold blood… as he had once done. It was revenge.

But Artel didn’t give him time to process. He raised his hand again, his cold eyes gleaming with twisted pleasure:

“Cut off their heads. All of them.”

The blades flew toward the children without mercy. Their final gasps mingled with the sound of tearing flesh and bones — one after another — until none were left. Blood flooded the room like a crimson sea. The small heads rolled across the floor, their eyes still open, as if they couldn’t grasp what had happened even in death.

And in the middle of this hell

Ryoma was silent. But his eyes burned with indescribable madness. Something dark within him shattered. Rage, pain, hatred — everything exploded inside like a volcano no force could contain. His clenched fists began to tremble, his limbs moved despite the weight, despite the pain tearing through his muscles. His blood felt like it was burning in his veins, every cell screaming for vengeance.

And in a moment

His eyes turned into pure glowing fury — a rage the world had never seen before.

He took a deep breath, and began to rise slowly, his wounded body howling with pain — but he didn’t care. He began pulling out the spears one by one. Starting with his legs, then his arms, his thigh, and finally the spear embedded in his stomach. Blood gushed from the wound, but he didn’t stop.

He took his first steps with great difficulty — but his resolve was as hard as steel. Nothing mattered to him anymor...

“Artel…” he whispered his name in a hoarse voice, but his words were soaked in hatred.

“I’ll tear you apart with my own hands.”

He continued walking, his steps calm but heavy with rage. The killing aura surrounding him was suffocating, taking the form of a monstrous beast the size of mountains. The soldiers who had intended to attack him couldn't even lift their swords. One of the guards behind him felt as if death itself stood before him. He couldn’t move, his breath was shallow. He struggled to lift his right hand and grasped his sword, but quickly realized there was only one way to survive—

he inflicted a deep wound on himself, cutting off his entire left arm, just to escape Ryoma’s deathly aura.

But Ryoma noticed nothing. His mind was fixated on one person—Artel.

Artel stood retreating, for the first time in his life feeling true fear. He stared at Ryoma approaching him silently, as if words were no longer necessary.

Artel tried to step back, but his legs betrayed him, and he spoke, knowing it was the end:

“Come, Ryoma. This is how the world works—full of revenge. Now it’s your turn to be the avenger—”

But he couldn’t finish his sentence, because Ryoma wasn’t listening. He was like a beast.

Suddenly, a guard lunged at him from behind, exploiting the moment when Ryoma had lost himself to hatred. Then, with a deadly strike, a blow landed directly on his energy core—a core that had been unstable from the start.

And at that moment, a terrifying silence fell.

Ryoma’s eyes glowed ominously. The air around him grew heavy, as if existence itself was suffocating. Then, in a single moment…

His core exploded, tearing his body apart.

But it wasn’t just his body that exploded—

the royal palace was destroyed.

No one survived. Not the king, not Artel, not the soldiers.

These were fragments of Ryoma’s memories about how he died; rage coursed through his veins from the betrayal he had suffered. But he had yet to recover the memories of his childhood, how he became a strong warrior, or the laws of the former world.

When Carter’s siblings saw him awaken in bed, they all embraced him with love and worry. His friends also came and hugged him, concerned for his health. His little sister Clara tearfully asked:

“Brother, are you healed? Are you okay?”

Ryoma replied coldly and indifferently:

“Yes, don’t worry. I’m fine, the poison is gone.”

But Adam, the eldest brother, wasn’t convinced. He knew the poison had been lethal, and it was impossible to survive it so easily. The others thought it was just a miracle and didn’t suspect anything.

Ryoma remained silent. He couldn’t tell them the truth—that he wasn’t really their brother. He felt sadness for them, but he decided to stay quiet. He tried to force a smile and said:

“Go on and keep playing. I’ll wait here. I’m still a bit tired.”

Adam stayed by his side, clearly suspicious. He then said seriously:

“How did you heal without any medicine or treatment? You were on your deathbed!”

Ryoma realized Adam was too smart to be easily fooled. He had been the one caring for Carter during his illness. As they watched their friends running and playing, Ryoma looked at him seriously and answered bluntly:

“Carter is dead.”

Adam was shocked by his words and asked, stunned:

“What do you mean? You’re right here in front of me. How can you say he’s dead?”

“Yes, I’m in front of you, but I’m not Carter. I’m someone else who came into this body from a different world than yours.”

Adam looked at him in disbelief, then said angrily:

“Are you kidding me? That makes no sense!”

He stood up abruptly and grabbed Ryoma by the collar, but Ryoma didn’t resist. The sorrowful look in his eyes confirmed to Adam that he wasn’t lying.

Adam sat on the ground, deep in thought, then said in a low voice:

"Can you tell me… did Carter die happy or sad? Did he suffer before his death? And by the way, what should I call you? Should I keep calling you Carter, or do you have another name?"

Ryoma replied calmly:

"Call me whatever you like. As for Carter's death, I don’t know if it was easy or difficult, but I believe he died sad, because he was alone and no one was by his side when he passed away."

Tears started gathering in Adam’s eyes; he felt sorrow over losing his brother. Even though he knew he would die eventually, the separation was harder than he imagined.

He quickly wiped his tears so no one would see him crying, then said in a hoarse voice:

"You seem experienced in life. How long exactly did you live in your previous world?"

"I don’t know. But when I reached two hundred, I stopped counting the years that followed."

Adam was surprised and asked in astonishment:

"Do all the inhabitants of your world live that long?"

"Only the strong ones."

Adam looked at him intently and asked:

"If you were one of the strong, then how did you die?"

Ryoma answered in a sad tone:

"I was deceived… I fell into a trap set by people I protected with everything I had."

Adam felt deep sorrow—partly for Ryoma’s betrayal, and partly for his brother who had died. His sobbing was intense, as he tried to hide his flushed face from his friends and siblings who noticed the trembling of his shoulders from crying. He pulled on his rough shirt to quickly wipe his tears before they could turn toward him.

Ryoma asked, curiosity piqued and with a tone suggesting concern:

"Are there any particular powers in this world? Magic or supernatural abilities?"

Adam replied in a low voice, his breath short from sorrow:

"No, I don’t know of any powers you're talking about, but no—this is just a normal world."

Ryoma felt a deep sense of alienation and tried to hold himself together. He paused for a moment, then asked with a doubtful tone:

"Are there caves or unnatural places?"

Adam gave the same answer, calmly:

"No."

Many questions started spinning in Ryoma’s head. He seemed hesitant as he reviewed every memory he had. He wondered internally: "Were Carter’s memories fake? Where did he go, then? And what kind of creature was Carter fighting?"

Ryoma turned to Adam, suspecting he was lying, and said more sharply:

"I know the reason behind your brother’s death. If you tell me the truth about these questions, I’ll tell you everything I know about Carter."

Adam replied with a smile, his eyes full of tears, seemingly hiding his pain:

"Why didn’t you tell me how he died? Fine, tell me—how did he die?"

Ryoma replied in a stern tone:

"Answer some questions first, then I’ll answer you."

Adam, starting to lose patience, said:

"Fine, ask your questions."

Ryoma asked in a harsh tone, suspecting Adam had lied at first:

"Are there any strange caves or areas that are foggy or become foggy at certain times?"

Adam gave the same answer, with an extremely cold tone and neutral expression—no sign of lying on his face:

"No."

Ryoma asked with a voice trembling with doubt:

"Are there large monsters or creatures with supernatural energy?"

Adam looked at Ryoma with confusion and replied in a puzzled voice:

"I don’t understand. What monsters are you talking about? There are only predatory animals."

Ryoma began to doubt his memories about the tiger that poisoned him. A sense of confusion and anxiety seeped into his heart. A strange feeling pushed him to run into the forest, his eyes full of doubt. He ran quickly between the trees, saying in a disturbed tone, "I don’t understand anything anymore. My mind can’t take this. Damn it!"

Adam followed him, speaking anxiously, "Why did you suddenly start running? Tell me, why did my brother die so quickly?"

Ryoma replied, his tone quick and filled with hope for an answer, "I’m searching for the same question you’re asking—and its answer."

Adam, surprised and trying to understand, said, "I don’t get it. How?"

Ryoma spoke in a soft voice, as if the words struggled to leave his lips, "Your brother Carter went to a strange place, like a large cave filled with mist. When he entered, a fiery tiger monster attacked him. It was huge—about the size of giant trees. Its fangs were massive, and its claws were sharp like swords. It wounded his left arm with its poisonous claws. Just before it killed him, someone pulled him from behind and took him to another dimension. That’s all I remember about Carter."

Adam responded with disbelief and shock, "What are you saying? A cave? A fiery tiger? Are you insane? These things don’t exist. Maybe your memories from your world got mixed with the memories of this world."

Ryoma remained stunned, reviewing his memories, yet he was convinced this was the truth he lived in—even if it was strange. He asked, full of questions, "Where was your brother before he was poisoned?"

Adam looked at Ryoma and said, "He was at home, in his room."

Ryoma, now more puzzled, asked, "Did he leave his room?"

Adam quickly answered as if it was a simple fact, "No, he didn’t leave. He was just at home, asleep."

Questions swirled in Ryoma’s head, and he started thinking of different possibilities: "Was he dreaming about that place? No, I don’t think so. Maybe he was transported there somehow, or maybe someone took him—took his soul and left his body asleep? Damn it, I don’t know how!"

Ryoma suddenly stopped running. He looked like he was deep in thought, trying to process everything. Slowly, he began to ask new questions, "How could he not have left his house? Then where was that place?" Then he remembered Carter’s injury on his left hand and asked in confusion, "What about the wound on his left hand? Did he tell you what caused it?"

Adam, hesitating and speaking unclearly, said, "No, there wasn’t any injury."

Ryoma, now worried and stressed, replied determinedly, "Okay." Then he began running again, saying in a rushed tone, "Come on, hurry! We have to find that cave. I have a strange feeling."

Ryoma and Adam ran through the forest and mountains for a long time but couldn’t find the cave or the misty place. After a long while, they decided to return to the village. Night had fallen, the moonlight shone brightly in the sky, and the stars decorated the horizon. Upon their return, all their friends and family were searching for them.

Adam went to his siblings and hugged them, but he couldn’t bring himself to say that Carter had died. Adam told them in a shaky tone, "Don’t worry. We were just talking in the forest for a bit."

His sister, worried, asked, "What were you talking about for all that time? You were gone so long."

Ryoma stepped in and said firmly, trying to ease the tension, "Is it really important to know what we talked about? What matters is that we’re safe and together."

Adam looked at Ryoma, forcing a fake laugh, his smile full of sorrow, like a madman smiling for no reason, hiding his pain inside while the hurt was clearly visible in his eyes.

Then Ryoma heard a voice whispering in his ear: "So, you’re the one fate chose to suffer."

Ryoma quickly turned, looking for the source of the voice, and said in a low voice, filled with confusion and anger, "Who? Who’s talking to me?"

His friends and Adam’s siblings saw him talking to himself. Then Ryoma heard the voice again, which said: "Don’t worry. I’m Carter."

Shock appeared on Ryoma’s face. He said, "How… where are you?"

Carter laughed and said, "Does it even matter where I am? I don’t even know you, and you don’t know me."

Ryoma, confused, said, "Yes, I don’t know you, and you don’t know me. But tell me where you are. Do you want me to take your place and your family?"

Carter replied angrily, "Yes, you can take my place and my family. I’ve lost everything."

Ryoma didn’t understand and said:

“How did you lose everything? Your family is still alive—you haven’t lost anything.”

Carter replied:

“You didn’t understand me. You’ll know in the future what I meant by losing everything.

I was the one who abandoned this body, and you’ll know why I did that.

I thought it would be buried once I gave it up, but it’s a wonderful coincidence that you ended up in it.”

Ryoma stood frozen, shocked and speechless. The voice continued:

“Beware the fate of this body—it is very difficult.”

Ryoma, with a soft and confused voice, trying to find answers to the questions spinning in his mind, asked:

“Tell me, where were you poisoned? Where was the cave you were in? And what was the nature of that place?”