Lears woke up, gasping for air as sweat drenched his entire body. He held his head tightly, his breathing uneven.
"…It's happened six times already," he muttered under his breath.
He stood up from his bed and changed his clothes."Ever since that man named Fujimiya Hanemia arrived, strange things keep happening. Every time he dies, I… feel something. But what's worse—no one else seems to notice."
Lears stepped outside, closing the door behind him, and began walking toward Elsyia's house. On the way, he passed by a fruit vendor and decided to buy some as a small gift for Elsyia and Fujimiya.
When he arrived, he swallowed hard before knocking and entering."El… Elsyia, I came just like I promi—"
He froze mid-sentence. Standing beside Elsyia was a small girl helping her cook.
"Oh, Lears! You're here," Elsyia greeted kindly.
"Who's that little girl?" Lears asked.
"Oh right, I forgot to introduce her. Her name is Shun Mei—just call her Mei," Elsyia said warmly.
"Nice to meet you," the little girl said, bowing slightly. "I came from another world."
Lears' eyes widened.He rushed toward the bed where Fujimiya usually slept—empty.
"It's all repeating again…" he whispered, realizing that Kars' house was about to explode.
"Uncle, what's wrong?" Mei asked innocently.
"Lears, you seem… off today," Elsyia said, concerned. "Are you feeling sick?"
"Ah, no, no," Lears forced a laugh. "I just heard a horror story last night, I guess it's making me paranoid—hahaha!"
He turned to the window and stared blankly at the sky."What's really going on…?"
"Hey, Lears," Elsyia called. "Do you want to come with me to the market?"
"…Sure," he replied quietly.
Elsewhere
SYSTEM:Eliminated: KarsWinner: Hanemia Fujimiya
SYSTEM:According to Death Game rules, all assets of the defeated shall be inherited by the victor.
Fujimiya brushed his white hair back, revealing his glowing yellow eyes."Yosh. Step two—complete. Mei, help me change my clothes, would you?"
Silence.
"…Oh right," he sighed, realizing. "You're still carrying out step one, huh?"
He frowned."Hurry up, Mei. It's lonely without you."
He changed into another outfit and looked into the mirror."Well then… time to begin the next scenario."
Fujimiya left the house and headed for the market—his goal: to publicly declare himself the noble successor of Kars.
"Hey, beautiful maid over there. Come with me," he ordered.
"As you wish, my lord," she replied.
Fujimiya smirked as he boarded a carriage and rode toward the market.When he arrived, everyone's eyes turned to him with confusion and suspicion.
"Hey, isn't that Kars' noble emblem?" one villager whispered."Yeah, but who's that weird guy with white hair and yellow eyes?" said another.
Fujimiya looked at them calmly and raised his hand."People of my kingdom, I'm sure you're confused seeing me step out of this carriage instead of Kars. Don't worry—I'll tell you why. In short, Kars lost in the Death Game. And according to its rules, the victor inherits everything."
"Then who are you?" asked a villager.
"Fujimiya Hanemia," he replied with a cold, sharp gaze.
"What's your purpose here?" another asked.
"No need for small talk," Fujimiya said as he walked forward, his eyes scanning the crowd—until they landed on a woman with short purple hair."Oh… you seem interesting."
The woman stepped back, frowning."Don't pretend, Fujimiya. We know each other!" she snapped.
"Oh? Have we met before?" he said with feigned confusion.
Riene gritted her teeth. "Just as I thought. Your 'loop' allows you to return from death, doesn't it? From the start, your plan was just bait—to trigger your reset. You used us as tools!"
Fujimiya smiled slyly."Relax, my dear citizens. This woman is clearly delirious—she must think I'm Kars."
The villagers murmured among themselves."Yeah, nobles are always like that. Especially the women," one said mockingly.
"I heard Kazu Volkafis has been involved in some big corruption scandal," another added.
Fujimiya stretched out his hand toward Riene."Join me, Riene."
She stared at his hand, then into his eyes—and froze. His gaze was empty, emotionless, cold.
Riene had been experiencing strange phenomena lately.Every few days, time seemed to rewind. She would live the same days again and again—until the fifth repetition, when she met Fujimiya. After that, the loop stopped… until his death in the Death Game restarted everything.
Just as she was about to reach for his hand—a shoe flew toward Fujimiya's head.
Thud.
Fujimiya rubbed his temple where the shoe had struck, while his servants quickly drew their weapons to seize the attacker.But Fujimiya calmly raised his hand, signaling them to stop.
"So, you've come," he said coldly.
Lears stood before him, eyes burning with anger.Elsyia looked between them, confused by Lears' fury.Meanwhile, Mei covered her mouth with her small hand, sensing what was coming.
Fujimiya gave another signal. His servants threw smoke bombs to cover their retreat.Through the haze, Fujimiya grasped the pendant around his neck—a charm shaped like a miniature sword.
"I'll borrow your power… Goddess Pandora."
The pendant glowed, enveloping Fujimiya in divine energy.He gestured for his servants to withdraw as he captured Riene, Elsyia, and Lears—then fused with Mei.
He brought them all to Kars' abandoned mansion, tying everyone up except for Mei.
The glow faded, returning the pendant to its dormant form.
"Hey, what the hell is this?!" Lears shouted.
Fujimiya crouched down, pulling Mei out from his body."You really don't know when to be grateful, do you?" he said coldly.
"Huh?"
"I just paid off all your debts, you idiot."
…
Silence filled the room.
…
"Hanemia Fujimiya," said a familiar voice.
"Ah, finally, someone pronounces my name correctly."
"You're in big trouble," Kars said darkly. "You have the ability to loop, don't you?"
"Loop? Sorry, but I don't," Fujimiya replied flatly.
"Liar! You are Hanemia Fujimiya! A man from another world—age 20, height 200 centimeters, weight 50 kilograms!"
Fujimiya gave a disgusted smirk."…Yeah, you're right about all that." He took a deep breath."But I'm not affected by your paradox or time loop."
"I'm not either!" Riene added sharply.
Elsyia, still confused, looked between them."Wait, what are you talking about? Paradox? Loop? And why are you both so angry at Fujimiya?"
Fujimiya stepped closer to Elsyia, lifting her chin gently as he stared into her eyes."Your eyes… are beautiful," he murmured.
Before he could say more, Mei hugged him tightly from behind—her small body trembling with jealousy.
Fujimiya's lips curved into a devilish smile."So… one of you isn't affected by the loop, and two of you are."
He chuckled softly."This just got a lot more interesting."
To be continued…