'Dammit, that stings.'
The wound on his neck wasn't deep, nor was it anything serious—
But it still stung.
He did his best to look unbothered.
All he could do now was gently run his fingers through Jasmine's hair as she sobbed into his shoulder.
Her arms were wrapped tightly around him, as if afraid he might vanish if she let go.
'At least I've outgrown her, huh…'
Before his memories returned, he recalled being the same height as her.
The cut on his neck had already been frozen over with mana.
He couldn't show her that it hurt. Not even a flinch.
He could endure physical pain.
He had to.
After all, in the eyes of the world, he was the boy who survived two years in the Void Realm.
Showing weakness wasn't an option.
Now, he had to play the role of the prince who clawed his way out of hell.
Acting.
That—Azriel could do better than most.
Maybe even better than lying.
Back when he was Leo, he'd been part of the theater club once.
Played lead roles in countless school productions.
He'd been good at it—great, even.
But like everything else…
He quit.
Just like the basketball club.
Just like music.
No matter what he tried, Leo could never fill the hollow space inside his chest.
Everyone else was chasing dreams. Working hard.
Living.
He was the only one who had nothing.
No goal. No spark.
Only temporary excitement that died the moment he got good at something.
'...All I have to do now is play the role of a survivor.'
A convincing one.
A treacherous one.
'You were the same, weren't you… Azriel?'
Someone else who was empty.Someone who trained—not because he had dreams—
But because he wanted to make his parents proud.
And in the end…
They both failed miserably at even that.
Azriel could recall the memories now—
The previous Azriel training in the dead of night, for hours. Alone.
Not because he wanted to be a hero.
Not because he had something to prove.
He simply wanted to be seen.
To be enough.
But he never got the chance.
Neither of them ever did.
"How… how are you here?" Jasmine's hoarse voice broke the silence, pulling him from his thoughts.
"You were supposed to be dead."
She looked up at him, her eyes still glassy with tears.
"It's a long story… but—"
So, he told her.
The same version he gave Solomon and Ragnar.
The wandering in Europe.
The escape from the Void Realm.
He left out Crying Fog—for now.
Somehow, he just knew he'd meet that abomination again.
When he finished speaking, he glanced at her face.
She looked pale—wide-eyed, disbelieving.
He was certain that if he said anything more, she might actually faint.
"T-Two years… you really spent two years in the Void Realm?"
Azriel nodded slowly.
"Yeah. I did."
'In an alternate timeline, maybe.'
"And to end up in Europe right after…?"
"…Yeah."
He didn't really have anything else to say.
'At least the Europe part wasn't a lie.'
"Oh, by the way, dear sister of mine…"
"Y-Yes?"
She looked up at him nervously, startled by the sudden tone shift.
"How long are you planning to… not let me go?"
"W-What? What do you mean?"
Tears welled again in her eyes.
Azriel sighed—internally—and offered a tired smile.
"I meant your arms. Are you going to keep hugging me like this forever?"
"H-Huh? Ah—!"
As if realizing it all at once, she jumped back, flustered.
Azriel stifled a laugh.
Her cheeks flushed red in embarrassment.
Quickly turning away, Jasmine picked up Silver Shine and dismissed it into her storage ring.
'…Mother's soul weapon, huh.'
Just like Azriel inherited Void Eater from their father, Jasmine had received her weapon from their mother, Aeliana.
"Ah! Your neck, Azriel!"
Noticing the wound she'd caused, she panicked and tossed a health potion from her storage ring toward him.
He caught it easily.
'Seriously, what is it with rich people and throwing expensive stuff?'
Was it really that hard to just hand things over?
Azriel drank the potion in one go and casually dropped the empty vial on the ground.
What? It had no value left.
He was about to say something—
Until he froze.
Because—
[• System: Unlocked!]
: [Processing information...]
"Huh...?"
Notifications were suddenly flashing in front of his eyes.
"...Azriel?"
[ • Main Event Completed: Home Sweet Home.]
[ • Main Quest Completed: Survive Europe and return to EASC.]
[ • Performance evaluation: Excellent!]
-> [Not even dying in both worlds could break you]
-> [Unlocking the first form Death's Blossom was as easy as breathing for the son of death]
-> [Not even a Titan could break your mind and prevent you from returning home]
-> [Deceitful against friends and foes. Dying twice was not enough for someone like you to stop being two-faced. Magnificent.]
[ • Event Experience: 11% gained]
-> [Mana core level 2: [0%——[14%]————————————100%]
Azriel felt a warm, blissful energy suddenly invade his body. Controlling the mana in his body became even easier as it became thicker and flowed smoother. Sadly, the euphoric energy disappeared shortly after.
[ • Quest Reward: Skill gained!]
-> [Core Reaper]
: [Status will be updated]
[ • The plot has been altered: Your survival is changing the timeline!]
Azriel's thoughts stalled as he stared, slack-jawed, at the elegant obsidian and ivory messages.
The same colors as his status window.
His lips were frozen mid-smile.
'What… what is all this?'
…
System.
He thought he didn't have one.
He was wrong.
But this wasn't the protagonist's system.
Not even close.
Honestly, he wasn't sure if he could even call it a system.
Still…
"Heh…"
A grin broke across his face.
He'd never planned to sit on the sidelines and watch things play out.
'Now I get rewards for messing with the plot? Perfect.'
"Brother… are you okay?"
Jasmine's voice snapped him out of his trance.
She'd been watching him all this time, her brows furrowed in concern.
"Ah, sorry. I was just… lost in thought."
It was a poor excuse.
But with his head still spinning from the system's notifications, it was the best he could do.
"…Right."
He could see the pity in her eyes.
'Yep. She definitely thinks I've gone insane…'
'Well, at least it supports the 'Void Realm messed with my mind' story.'
'I'll figure the system stuff out later.'
Shaking off the thoughts, he turned to her.
"How about we go meet Uncle Ragnar? He's probably still waiting with Grandmaster Thomas."
Jasmine nodded, regaining her composure.
"Sounds good to me. We shouldn't keep them waiting any longer."
The two of them began walking side by side.
The silence between them wasn't awkward.
It was peaceful.
Azriel's lips curved up in a small smile.
Until—
"I guess those weird habits from spending two years in the Void Realm didn't change after all…"
Azriel stumbled, nearly tripping over his own feet.