After breakfast together, Il-Seong returned to his room, while Na-Rae went to her mother's house to pick up her younger sister, Na-Rin. Lying in his room, Il-Seong reflected on the events of this morning.
"Was I too harsh with her?" Il-Seong murmured, recalling Decimilia's words from earlier. Honestly, Il-Seong didn't hate her or anything, it was just that the role Decimilia had thrust upon him was too heavy and too sudden. He still remembered it clearly – the pouring rain, his first meeting with Decimilia, two years ago when he was still in his third year of high school.
The rain that day was torrential.
A boy sat alone in the middle of the park, sheltering from the rain under a slide. It had only been a month since his parents died in an accident. Now he lived with his neighbor, Na-Rae, whom he had always played with. Why was he hiding alone in the park, you ask? The answer was simple, he had just fought with Na-Rae.
Seeing Na-Rae sometimes keeping her distance, Il-Seong thought she was starting to hate him and saw him as a burden in her life. However, the moment those words left his mouth, Na-Rae instantly flared up and reflexively slapped him. Unable to accept it, Il-Seong decided to run away from home.
In the rain, Il-Seong began shivering from the cold, starting to regret running away. As he wondered when the rain would stop, the empty space in front of him suddenly seemed to crack, then shatter. Emerging from the fissure was a beautiful girl with white hair and fiery red eyes. Her skin was flawlessly smooth and pale, her presence radiating warmth that enveloped the freezing Il-Seong. Il-Seong thought he was hallucinating, but that was disproven by what the girl did next.
The girl smiled mischievously, her hands reaching for Il-Seong's face as she spoke.
"Ahh~ I've finally found you, Kang Il-Seong, the Weaver, my beloved fiancé. So this is your reincarnated form. You look cute and adorable," she said with a wide smile and a loving, melancholic gaze.
Her hands, cold yet radiating an unusual warmth, made Il-Seong realize he wasn't dreaming. This... was real!
Instantly, Il-Seong was startled and fell backward, pointing and shouting.
"Ahhh!!! A ghost! Oh gods, protect this pitiful servant of yours--"
Seeing Il-Seong's reaction, the girl paused for a moment before bursting into laughter, holding her stomach. "Ahahahaha!!! A ghost? Is my beautiful face so unattractive that you call me a ghost? 'Oh gods, protect this pitiful servant of yours' HAHAHAHA!!! You look ridiculous and cute at the same time, oh my, I prefer this version of you compared to your past self."
Seeing his prayer was ineffective, Il-Seong panicked and immediately adopted a fighting stance, his fists clenched like a boxer.
"W-who are you? W-what do you want with me?" Though stammering, Il-Seong's gaze was serious; he was ready to fight, or at least that's what he thought at that moment.
Seeing the conviction in the boy's eyes, the girl stopped laughing, her expression softening. With a polite and gentle gesture, she introduced herself.
"I am Des Decimilia Neir Alto, the Succubus Queen. Currently, I lead the Red Banner rebellion. I came here to meet the reincarnation of my fiancé, Kang Il-Seong, the Weaver."
Il-Seong scratched his head upon hearing this. Succubus? The Weaver? Reincarnation? Him?
"Y-you've got the wrong person! There's more than one Kang Il-Seong! There are many Kang Il-Seongs out there! Why me?!"
The girl just smiled and continued,
"The unusual birthmark on your back, and… the death of your parents."
Il-Seong was shocked when she mentioned his unusual birthmark, as very few people knew about it besides his parents and himself. The hourglass-shaped birthmark, about 2 centimeters in size, was a closely guarded family secret. But it was the next thing that made Il-Seong's eyes widen in disbelief.
"M-my parents' death… Explain! Explain what you mean by that!"
His fear vanished instantly, replaced by explosive anger.
"Calm down first, Il-Seong. Let me explain everything."
Il-Seong, his face still tense, nodded, signaling Decimilia to continue.
"In our world, Trhaedal, live various races. Humans are one of them, the weakest race, often hunted by others like beastmen and daemons. However, among some nobles, many still felt moved by conscience to liberate humans. Unfortunately, before that could happen, a human slave received a blessing from the Celestial race and evolved into a High Human."
"I don't care about your long story! Hurry up and tell me what it has to do with my parents' death?!"
Decimilia smiled again and stroked Il-Seong's head. "Could you please be patient just a little longer…? We're almost at that part." Then, Decimilia resumed her story.
"This High Human wielded power no ordinary person should possess. Alone, he staged a coup, indiscriminately slaughtering other races. The nobles who previously wanted to help tried to calm him down, but a tragedy occurred, killing several racial leaders. As a result, a great war erupted in our world.
Hundreds of years passed, and the rule of the new race, the High Humans, continued to expand. Until finally, a figure we called the Weaver emerged, Kang Il-Seong.
Kang Il-Seong's ability to control the will of nature and manipulating the world, combined with his brilliant strategies, brought victories in reclaiming several capitals and homes for the exiled races.
However, because you lacked the power to protect yourself, you were killed instantly right after we became engaged. Before your soul could disperse, an ancient dragon performed a ritual that drained its energy completely, causing it to fall into a deep, long slumber."
"Reincarnation?" Il-Seong asked the girl. Everything she told him sounded like a mere fairy tale. A bedtime story. Yet, Il-Seong decided to believe her for now.
"Exactly. We succeeded in reincarnating you. Unfortunately, the High Human King learned of this. He then began sending his troops to this world to find you. However, due to the protection of the ancient dragon, they couldn't locate you. As a result, they tried to kill you with a powerful curse. But because the dragon's protection was too strong… that curse…"
Decimilia didn't need to finish. Il-Seong understood instantly.
"That curse killed my parents…"
With a sad expression, Decimilia could only nod. Il-Seong felt a pang in his chest. He felt guilty and angry; if all this was true, then his parents died because of him. And this High Human race made him their enemy. But suddenly, he realized something, if his parents died because of a curse, were they still trying to curse him? If yes, then…
"Na-Rae unnie! Hey Deci, is that curse still going to continue?!"
Panic now haunted Il-Seong; his heart pounded violently.
"Ah, yes, about that, it is still--" Before Decimilia could finish speaking, Il-Seong's body tensed.
Faintly, Il-Seong heard a familiar voice shouting his name. Il-Seong knew Na-Rae was panicking, searching for him while calling out. Il-Seong looked around; soon his eyes spotted Na-Rae running through the rain looking for him. Her face was a mix of panic and tears, but when her eyes met Il-Seong's, they lit up. She ran towards Il-Seong, crossing the street.
What kind of a cruel fate befell Il-Seong? In the middle of the road, a large truck suddenly appeared. It swiftly slammed into Na-Rae's body, sending her flying far away. Her body rolled several times before stopping. Il-Seong froze momentarily, his mind struggling to process what just happened, before he finally screamed loudly and ran towards Na-Rae's body.
Il-Seong, with tears streaming down his face and sobbing, supported Na-Rae's body and head. Blood covered Na-Rae's head and body, her leg was twisted unnaturally. Despite this, Na-Rae still tried to smile. With all her strength, her hand reached for Il-Seong's face.
"Thank goodness… you're… alright…."
"Na-Rae! I'm sorry! Forgive me..! This is all my fault--"
Na-Rae's weakening fingers touched Il-Seong's lips.
"Ssssh… I'm sorry… for slapping you…"
"No-no, you weren't wrong, Na-Rae, I deserved that slap… The hospital! Yes, let's get to the hospital, and after you recover, slap me again, Na-Rae!"
With streaming tears, Il-Seong forced a smile, trying to convince himself everything would be alright.
Hearing Il-Seong's answer, Na-Rae smiled. Her eyes began to look vacant. With all her remaining strength, she uttered her last words.
"…I… love you…"
Her hand fell limp and lifeless. Na-Rae was no longer breathing. Na-Rae had passed away.
Il-Seong's eyes widened in shock. Still forcing a smile, he shook Na-Rae's body.
"Unnie! Na-Rae Unnie! Y-yeah, you're just unconscious, right? Hold on, I'll get help!"
His eyes darted around frantically. The truck that had hit Na-Rae had vanished without a trace. The surrounding streets were deserted, with no passersby at all. Il-Seong started running while screaming for help—
"Help! Somebody heeeeelp! ANYONE, PLEEEASE HELP!"
Losing his balance, Il-Seong stumbled and fell face-first onto the ground. The pain and the cold puddle of rainwater snapped him back to reality. Na-Rae was gone. The girl who had always supported him through joy and sorrow was no longer here. Memories of their time together began echoing in his mind. On that day, beneath the pouring rain, a young man lay collapsed on the road, screaming in utter despair.