The scene continued within Kazuki's unconscious mind as his eyes opened—but he still hadn't escaped from the dream. He found himself submerged deep within a realm of memories. But these weren't from his current life. No… these were fractured, disjointed glimpses from a life long past.
In the vision, Kazuki saw himself—not as the boy named Kazuki, but as the person he once was. Atshushi.(And dear readers, if you've forgotten, this was already revealed back in Chapter 1 — so feel free to revisit it if you need a reminder of his true name from his past life.)
The first fragment struck like a shard of glass. Atshushi, cold and ruthless, was shown mercilessly murdering several humans. The faces of his victims blurred into the shadows, but the blood-stained ground and the dark satisfaction in his gaze were clear as day. The image flickered out like a dying flame.
Another scene replaced it — Atshushi slumped over a desk in a college classroom, half-asleep and indifferent to the world around him. A professor approached, his face stern, and scolded him. But Atshushi slowly raised his head, his eyes sharp as daggers, and locked them onto the professor's. The sheer malice in that gaze made the man hesitate, his confidence wavering. Unable to stand up to such hostility, the professor later filed for his suspension.
The memory twisted again. Atshushi now sat in a dimly lit room across from a therapist, the air heavy with tension. The therapist's voice trembled slightly as she asked,"How many sins have you committed in your life, and do you carry any regret for them?"
Atshushi gave a small, chilling smile, leaning forward as he replied in a calm, almost mocking tone,"I don't recall ever committing any sins."
The answer left the room in cold silence.
The scene morphed once more. Atshushi was at home, his mother timidly passing by him like a frightened shadow. His father, long dead, was nothing but a faded memory. The house itself seemed to bend under his presence. Even his mother flinched at the sound of his footsteps, and Kazuki could feel the oppressive dominance Atshushi held over everything and everyone in that house.
Then another vision — Atshushi in his college again, conversing with two of his classmates. Outwardly, the two laughed and spoke with him as if they were friends. But Kazuki could sense it… deep within their hearts, they feared him. Their kindness was born not out of affection, but of survival. And Atshushi knew it. He relished in that power.
Kazuki watched all of this in grim silence, feeling a strange, heavy pressure upon his chest. He closed his eyes tightly, refusing to witness any more, unwilling to hear the echoes of that sinister past.
But the darkness wasn't done with him.
From the depths of the void, Atshushi's sinister laugh began to echo—low, menacing, and all-encompassing. It came from every direction, surrounding Kazuki, closing in. The sound gnawed at the edges of his mind. Yet Kazuki stood firm, his expression hardened.
"Enough," he whispered to himself, refusing to open his eyes.
The chaos spirit's influence lingered around him like a lingering mist, and though Kazuki couldn't see it, those same haunting blue eyes watched from the darkness.
"You can throw these memories at me," Kazuki thought in defiance. "But I won't break. I won't lose myself."
And yet, the void dragged him deeper.