My eyes cracked open to a dim ceiling of wooden beams, as a dull throb pulsed faintly behind my forehead.
I pushed myself upright, slow and careful, letting the fog in my skull thin.
The room around me looked simple. Warm. Everything built from polished timber. No windows. Just lantern light glowing softly in the corners.
Then I noticed it.
A massive white-furred dog lay curled beside the bed, its chest rising in heavy, steady breaths. Its fur looked like clear snow. Way too majestic to be a regular animal.
For a moment I wondered if it was guarding me.
But I didn't put much thought into it, as I scanned the rest of the room.
A cabinet. A table with folded cloth on it. A small shelf of herbs.
Then my eyes caught the mirror propped at the far end.
Something in me tightened.
I swung my legs off the bed and stood, ignoring the faint ache in my temples.
Step by step, I walked toward the mirror.
When my reflection came into view, I finally got a picture of how this body truly looks.
White hair, falling in soft waves. White eyebrows. Pupils touched with silver, like moonlight sinking into water. Skin pale but healthy. Features almost delicate. (Concept image in reply.)
I reached up and brushed my fingers along my cheek.
Cute. Ethereal. Strangely serene.
I pressed my fingers to my forehead, trying to make sense of how I ended up in this room. But the moment I reached for the answer, the memories that hit me after my fight with the Gross Wyrm pushed everything else aside. My mind kept circling them, hungry to make sense of it all.
The Haldrins.
That name alone carried more weight than anything I ever picked up from the webnovel.
What I read back then barely scratched the surface—thirty chapters of palace politics and fluff.
Compared to this? It felt like someone had shown me the cover of a book and hidden the rest.
Now his memories were mine.
The first one that surfaced was faint but steady.
Soul essence.
I saw myself—this body—standing among other children with the same white hair. The old man in front of us had hair even whiter, long and heavy, his voice slow as he taught us what soul essence meant. I could almost feel the wooden floor under my small feet again. I could hear the other kids whispering.
Every person had a soul. That much I already knew.
But here, the soul wasn't just… you. It had an essence. A quality. Something that set people apart long before talent or training ever did.
And the only way to grasp the quality of soul you carried was by awakening a soul weapon.
Soul awakening.
That memory hit clearer than the rest—awakening wasn't optional. Without it, no one could touch mana at all. Even after awakening, the gap between people grew depending on how strong their soul essence actually was.
Some souls drew mana like breathing.
Others barely managed a spark.
Now staring at the white furred dog, I couldn't help but shake off the déjà vu creeping up my spine. Something about it tugged at a memory I hadn't fully digested yet. The faint pulse coming off its body felt familiar too, like I'd grown up around it without ever realizing why.
Then something snapped, I had memories of it kind.
It wasn't just a dog.
It was a magical beast.
The moment that thought surfaced, the picture sharpened. Grasslands stretching forever. Children with white hair chasing through them. Dozens of beasts running beside us like we were part of the same pack. The Haldrins had all sought magical beasts as their pets and companions.
And the Haldrins were loved the most by such beasts.
Animals with soul essence.
I took a slow step toward him, lifting my hand to give him a quick tap on the head, a simple gesture. No big deal.
I didn't even get that close, and that's when I heard it, the beast talked.
[Finally awake I see]
'It can talk?' I thought.
I didn't have a clear memory of any Haldrin talking with a magical beast, but still, all the memories weren't clear yet.
"You can talk?"
[Yes I can! All Magical Beasts are able to talk, we just choose not to!]
It then rolled onto their back and gave me a friendly upside down smile.
'So it's only talking to me, and it feels like his voice is playing in my mind, something only me could here.'
Then I approached it and gave it a small pet.
[Aw! You're the best,] it said, as it rolled back over and rubbed its head against my hand. [Could I ask you something?]
"Sure."
[Can you scratch my stomach for me? I've been doing so much for you, I'm a little tired,] It then lay on its back again and wiggled its paws as it looked up at me, begging with its adorable eyes.
'*Done so much for me,* does he mean he was watching out for me while I was unconscious?'
"I see no problem with that," I answered as I began to scratch its stomach.
Its stomach was very squishy and soft to the touch. It closed its eyes and just seemed to enjoy me giving it attention, as its paws wiggled happily as I continued petting it, my hand rubbed against its silky fur, and it let out a pleased sigh.
[Ahhh… that feels very nice. Thank you!]
Stepping back a little, I couldn't help but smile at the dog's cuteness, but then, I still needed to understand what had happened, so I decided to question it.
"Alright. Time for the questions," I said.
"You said you choose when to talk, which means you chose to talk to me. So why me?"
It then opened its eyes and looked up at me, [Hmm… I can sense something within you… I can sense an essence, an essence I haven't felt before—it's rather mysterious! You're different from the rest of the humans! I don't often trust humans but… I feel strangely safe with you. You're different, I can tell.]
'I see. So I'm now the one getting the mysterious trait meant for the protagonist,' I thought, and let out a small laugh.
"That's helpful," I muttered. "Anyway, what's your name? I'm Leonhardt, but you can call me Leon."
Then it chuckled and answered, [My name? I'm Sylveon, It's nice to meet you, Leon!]
Sylveon?
The name sounded a bit feminine, but the dog looked… well, I didn't want to misgender anyone. The thought made me chuckle, and somehow this dog was already lifting my mood.
"Nice to meet you, Sylveon," I said. "So… are you a he or a she?"
[I'm a he, actually! Most people tend to think I'm a woman because of my name, but I'm male!]
'His voice is so cute in my head,' I thought, as I gave him a small tap to the head.
His big ears began to twitch as I kept tapping his head. He began to look up at me with a curious gaze, as if wondering what I was going to do next.
Removing my hand from his head, I gave the room another full glance, before returning my gaze to Sylveon, "If you don't mind, can you tell me where I am?"
He then tilts his head, as he looked curious, [Oh! You're in Elijah's room right now! It's a cozy place, isn't it?]
His nose twitched as he sniffed the air around me, [I sense you're not from around here. Are you lost, Leon?]
"I'm not lost. My memory's just been a bit hazy lately."
[Hmm....]
He leaned closer and studied my face, head tilted with a concerned expression on his face, [That doesn't sound good… your memory is hazy?]
"It's getting better now, so there's nothing to worry about."
[If you say so, I suppose. Just make sure you don't get yourself in any trouble if you're still having memory issues though.]