Liora lay still with her back facing Xu Kai, eyes shut, but sleep did not come. Her body was calm, but her mind churned like a storm. That memory—it hadn't just been a dream. It was too clear, too vivid. And the pain when she tried to push deeper… it felt too real.
She swallowed hard and opened her eyes slowly, staring at the wall of her small hut, barely lit by the soft glow of the night light outside. Her fingers clenched slightly over the sheet as she whispered into the silence, "System… was that really my past life? Was I truly Aeris? And… was Atlas really my brother?"
The voice that answered came gently, almost like it had been waiting for the question.
[System: Affirmative. Atlas was your real brother. And you were Aeris.]
Liora froze. Her breath caught in her throat.
It wasn't a dream. It wasn't a fragment of someone else's memories.
It was her.
She was Aeris.
