"Even the strongest hearts were once broken ones."
The dungeon trembled from the echo of magic still hanging in the air. Steam hissed off broken stone; the metallic scent of blood mixed with ozone.
Mary and Rhazor stood side by side, the remains of the Evolved Mimic twitching before them — its once-majestic hybrid body now cleaved into two grotesque halves.
Each half pulsed with dim blue mana, like dying hearts still trying to beat.
Mary's eyes narrowed, the golden tone of her irises flickering with runic light.
"It divided its core. Two bodies, two minds, half the power."
Rhazor grinned, resting his flaming blade on his shoulder. "Half the power's still enough to be a pain."
She tilted her head toward the tunnel splitting into twin paths.
"You take this one."
He blinked, confused. "Wait, me?"
"You wanted to prove you can handle yourself without blowing up half a classroom, right?"
He chuckled sheepishly. "...Fair."
"Then fight this one," she said. "I'll follow the other. It's leading me to Asura and Lucilla. Their signatures are faint but still there."
"Alone?" he asked, worry slipping into his tone.
Mary smiled faintly. "You forget who trained you, kid. I don't need an escort."
She snapped her fingers — her Melody Core hummed, vibrating the air until it shimmered.
The sound folded into itself like invisible waves, and then she was gone — a streak of resonant light vanishing into the dungeon's veins.
Rhazor exhaled, gripping his sword tighter. "Well… guess it's just you and me, ugly."
He swung once, the arc of his flame carving the darkness open — and the fight resumed.
✦ Crimson Snow – The Vampire's Sin
Elsewhere, Lucilla's world had changed.
The dungeon walls melted into silver snowfall.
Cold wind bit at her face as she blinked, confused — until she recognized the smell of burning wood and iron.
Her old village.
The night of the fire.
That was the last night she saw her mother alive.
The cobblestone streets were drenched in blood, each flake of snow melting into crimson. Screams echoed from every direction, echoing through the mountain air like prayers gone unanswered.
Lucilla stumbled forward, heart pounding.
Then — she saw her.
A little girl with long white hair and scared crimson eyes, dragging a too-large dagger through the snow.
"Mama!"
The child ran into a collapsing house, and Lucilla — the adult one — followed, shouting, "Don't go in there!"
Inside, her mother stood before a beast — a feral vampire corrupted by mana sickness, its claws drenched in gore.
Lucilla froze.
She knew what came next, but she couldn't stop it.
The little girl lunged forward, hands trembling —
and struck blindly.
A short gasp.
A heavy silence.
The beast crumpled, but so did her mother — the dagger piercing through both.
The child's scream shattered the illusion's air.
"MAMA!"
Adult Lucilla fell to her knees beside them, sobbing, trembling hands hovering over her younger self's shoulders.
Her mother's face was serene — a faint smile even in death, eyes open, as if forgiving.
The snow outside burned red.
The mimic's voice slithered through the air like poison.
"You saved the village that night, didn't you? The 'young prodigy' vampire girl. Everyone praised you…"
Lucilla's tears hit the ground. "Stop…"
"But you never told them. You never told anyone that you killed her. You wear your calm like a mask — but your hands still remember her warmth."
Lucilla shook violently.
"I didn't mean to—"
"Intent changes nothing."
Her breathing broke. She wanted to scream, but no sound came.
The illusion thickened — the sky turning scarlet, the air tasting like ash.
Then, a spark of mana pulsed faintly behind her — a golden flare that wasn't hers.
Somewhere nearby, Asura was also being dragged into memory.
✦ Falling Star – The Prince and the Dying Light
He awoke in fire.
Ash and molten stone surrounded him.
And in his arms — Selene.
Her black hair spread like moonlight through his blood-soaked fingers. Her breathing was shallow, barely a whisper between heartbeats.
"Selene… stay with me!"
She smiled faintly, crimson dripping from the corner of her lips.
"You're crying again… You always look so serious when you're scared."
"Don't talk. Please." His voice broke. "I can fix this—I can save you!"
She weakly touched his cheek.
"Promise me you'll still smile. Even when it hurts."
Her hand dropped.
Her eyes dimmed.
And the world stopped moving.
"Asura…"
Her name fell from his lips like a prayer.
He screamed, shaking her lifeless body, calling her name again and again.
The laughter that followed was low and cruel — a voice he could never forget.
"You were never strong enough to protect anything, little prince."
Erevos stepped from the flame — tall, immaculate, monstrous. His eyes burned like coals.
Asura's body trembled. His golden eyes glowed faintly, anger and sorrow mixing until they were indistinguishable.
"Erevos…" he growled.
He stood slowly, blood dripping from his hands. The air bent around him as his aura ignited.
"I'll kill you."
The world warped as if reality itself feared his rage — but before his fury could touch Erevos, the scene fractured like shattered glass.
A voice — calm, mechanical — echoed within his mind.
[ WARNING: HIGH-INTENSITY ILLUSION DETECTED ]
[ PASSIVE SKILL — WILL OF THE REINCARNATED : PARTIAL TRIGGER ]
[ FORCE-BREAK PROTOCOL ENGAGED ]
The flames collapsed inward, fading into mist. Erevos's grin cracked into static.
Selene's body evaporated into gold dust.
Asura panted, wiping tears from his face, trembling.
"Nice try," he muttered. "You think you can break me with this?"
The mimic's laughter echoed faintly.
"Then let's see what breaks a man who's already died once."
And before Asura could brace himself—
the world folded again.
✦ The World Before Rebirth
He woke on a wooden floor.
The light in the room was dim — the kind of grey that precedes a storm.
Old posters lined the walls. A cracked window overlooked the faint glow of a Tokyo streetlight.
He looked down.
A Japanese school uniform clung to him — his old one.
Ink and blood pooled together on the floor, staining scattered sheets of paper covered in messy circles, sigils, and words scrawled with desperation.
"No… no, this—this isn't real…"
His voice was small. Trembling. Human.
He turned toward the desk mirror.
The reflection wasn't Asura Satomi.
It was Shun.
His lips quivered. "I'm… back?"
His chest tightened. "Was it all a dream? Selene… the academy…"
The mimic's whisper crawled up the walls.
"It was never real. You never left this world."
Shun collapsed to his knees, staring at the bloody pages.
He'd drawn summoning circles. He remembered now.
Hours spent copying magic designs from anime and web novels, chanting fake incantations under his breath.
"I tried so hard," he whispered. "I just wanted… to go somewhere else."
He stared at his bloodied hands. "I don't belong here…"
The whisper sharpened.
"Then leave."
Something snapped inside him.
He laughed — a hollow, broken laugh that barely sounded human.
He crawled toward the nearest wall and began slamming his head against it, tears spilling freely.
"Another world. Another world. Another world! I have to go!"
Blood ran down his face, his voice turning into raw sobs.
"Why won't you take me?! Why won't anyone take me?!"
He stumbled toward the window.
A single breath.
A small smile.
"If this world won't let me go…"
He took a step—then another.
The glass shattered.
And the cold air screamed.
✦ The Door That Never Closed
When he opened his eyes again, everything was white.
The scent of antiseptic burned his nose. The faint rhythmic beep of a heart monitor filled the silence.
He was in a hospital bed.
Bandages wrapped around his arms.
And standing beside him—his parents.
A man and woman with faces drained of hope, tears dried into silence.
Beside them, clutching a small notebook, stood a little girl.
His sister.
His father spoke first, voice gravelly.
"Shun… why? What were you thinking?"
His mother pressed trembling hands to her mouth, tears falling again.
"You could have died…"
Shun turned his head away. He said nothing.
He couldn't.
His throat felt like fire.
They waited for him to speak.
He didn't.
Finally, his father sighed and put an arm around his wife. "Let's… give him time."
They left the room, quiet as ghosts.
The little girl lingered at the doorway.
She looked at her brother — the boy who used to smile, now a hollow shell wrapped in gauze and sorrow.
Her name was Mary—at least, that's what he remembered calling her.
She wanted to speak, but the words froze in her throat.
So she simply nodded once… and followed her parents out.
✦ Snow and Silence
Later that night, she remembered.
She remembered sneaking outside weeks before — snow falling in silence.
Her brother was in the yard, barefoot in the cold, holding a wooden stick like a sword.
He swung it again and again, shouting incantations he'd memorized from anime.
"Skill activate—Mana Slash!"
Nothing happened.
He tried again.
And again.
Each cry weaker than the last, his voice cracking into sobs.
Finally, he dropped to his knees in the snow, whispering,
"Why doesn't it work? Why can't I go there? Why am I stuck here?"
Then he stood, staggering toward a tree.
She saw his intent before he acted.
"Onii-chan!" she screamed.
He froze, turning slowly.
Her tiny face was pale from the cold, but her eyes burned with worry.
He smiled faintly, tears glittering.
"You shouldn't be here, Mary."
"Then stop hurting yourself!" she shouted.
He turned away, pressing a hand to his forehead. "You don't understand…"
"I do!" she said, trembling. "You just want to be happy somewhere!"
He looked at her then — really looked — and for the first time, his tears fell without anger.
He stepped forward, hugged her tightly, and whispered,
"I'm sorry."
✦ The Door's Whisper
Back in the hospital, Shun sat curled up, his forehead pressed to his knees, crying quietly.
Outside the door, Mary pressed her ear against the wood.
Listening.
Hoping.
She wanted to tell him everything — that she'd seen, that she understood, that she just wanted him to smile again.
But she couldn't open the door.
Instead, she sat there, silent tears running down her cheeks, whispering through the wood,
"Onii-chan… please don't leave again."
The monitor beeped in rhythm with his breathing.
The night grew still.
And the illusion faded to black.