That figure...
The fading silhouette swirled inside Rent's head like an echo in an empty room.
Faint. Alien. Yet somehow... it felt incredibly close.
The light from the entity before him began to dim, revealing a vague form—faceless, formless. Just a silhouette flowing like luminous mist.
"You will begin a journey with a part of yourself. Or precisely... a part of your soul living in another universe."
Rent frowned.
"Another universe...? Another version...? What are you talking about?"
"I don't understand a single word you're saying."
"That is what humans call it. But reality is more complex. The soul is an undivided flow of energy, yet it can be reflected in many forms."
"And within you... lies the strongest reflection. Opposite, yet one."
"She has a life, but she is also like you; her wounds need mending."
"Wounds that can only be understood by one's own kind."
Rent swallowed hard. This all sounded like an exhausted philosopher's nightmare.
"Wait... you want me to meet another 'Me'? Living in a different universe?
Please speak clearly about your nonsense!
I should have just died, right? Why did you bother bringing me back to life!"
His voice cracked.
His chest felt tight. All the burdens, hatred, and despair suddenly spilled over.
He stared at the silhouette, his voice trembling.
"I don't deserve to live anymore! I can't even... be proud of being myself! I barely have the courage to fight life... and then at the end... I... just acted stupidly.
Heh... heh... (a bitter laugh) So stupid, if I hadn't acted. Maybe I wouldn't have met you here."
Silence. Quiet, no reply. He had let out all his overflowing regret and hatred.
The entity didn't answer. Only stared at him in silence. But Rent felt... warmth. Not judging, nor soothing. Just... presence.
Then the voice spoke:
" precisely because of that you were chosen, Rent Kaenda."
"You are not a perfect soul, but you are reluctant to surrender your fragile soul to nothingness."
"Because a moment of courage is more sincere than a lifetime of pretense.
Because you wanted to die, but still chose to help someone else.
Because even though your soul is cracked, you are still capable of loving...
...even if it is not yourself."
Rent closed his eyes.
He still denied all those words.
He wanted to scream, to deny it all, but he couldn't.
Only warm silence surrounded him.
He didn't even realize his body was trembling slightly.
Whether this was a soul, or just a dream of death. But the pain was real.
"I don't care who you are. But... why? Why do you... care about my condition?
I'm just a fool here!"
"And..." (staring at his palm) "somehow I feel... something is wrong."
"There is no right or wrong, only conviction within you, Rent Kaenda."
"The conviction to endure. The conviction to keep walking. And the conviction to keep looking forward."
"That is what has moved you all this time, not anyone, not anything. Purely from within you."
"That is Will, Rent Kaenda. The small ember within you is your own Will."
"Ember... fire? Will? I... ugh."
"You do not fully understand yet, but someday. That ember will return.
Slowly becoming whole again. Filling the emptiness of your own self.
And returning to you what was lost, Rent Kaenda."
The echo of the entity's warm voice turned the silent atmosphere into a comforting warmth. Enough to make someone feel calm and peaceful for a moment.
"You will relearn, understand the meaning of your life. And that place will guide you back."
Rent looked up. Staring deep into the white silhouette.
"Place? What place?"
Light began to envelop Rent. His body warmed up. The cold emptiness began to disappear, replaced by a sensation of weight... and gravity.
"You will be sent to another world. A world full of wonders.
A world full of magic, mystery, and unknown wounds.
A world far different from your old world, and you will find the answers you seek within it."
"There, you will meet her.
Your other self.
But remember:
She is not merely a mirror.
She is also wounded.
And she will also learn to love... you."
"This is not about saving the world.
This is about saving you both...
each other."
The silence thickened.
Before Rent, the entity's light began to flicker slowly—not from weakness, but like a candle flame preparing to go out after delivering its final message.
The void space vibrated gently, like the last breath of a world about to be left behind.
The entity shone a little brighter, as if looking directly into Rent's soul, though without eyes, without a face.
"Everything will change."
"But your deepest self will remain the same. That wound will come with you, until you choose to heal it."
Rent looked down.
His heart was still full of fear. But now there was a small... tiny conviction growing, even if he didn't know why.
The entity vibrated, as if smiling in silence.
"Then... I entrust to you a new world. A birth... not to forget, but to understand."
The light around Rent began to form a vortex.
The directionless white walls now cracked.
Wind emerged from the void. As if this silent universe began to breathe new life.
Rent's body lifted slowly.
It felt like floating in the womb of the universe—not just moving places, but moving meaning.
"Find yourself."
"Find her. She who is wounded like you."
"And... don't forget who you are. About you. All the things left unfinished...
you will complete them."
"Oh Foreign Soul, Rent Kaenda. Farewell."
He saw his hand fading... and changing.
His clothes vanished. Fear appeared—then was swallowed by curiosity.
"Another world... new life..." Rent muttered as his consciousness began to blur.
"I'm still scared. But... damn it. If it's come to this, I have no choice, do I?"
"Everything I haven't achieved... Ah, screw it. I don't care about my own fate anymore."
The light exploded. White became a painful glare. Then... falling.
Whoosh!
Wind rushed against his face. The white light vanished, replaced by a stinging blue. Rent fell freely from a height, then...
THUD!
He landed hard on a grassy surface. But it didn't hurt. His body felt soft, light, and fresher than before.
He opened his eyes. The sky... blue. Truly blue. Bluer than he had ever seen.
Clouds clumped in unique shapes—like paintings from a fairy tale.
Strange birds flew around, bright purple, flapping double-layered wings.
The air around was far different, fresher and warmer. The air around him tasted sweet. Fresh. Warm.
Rent stayed silent for a few seconds, processing the visual data entering his brain.
This world... was beautiful. Very beautiful. But also alien.
Around him was a vast grassland, adorned with blooming flowers in turquoise colors. In the distance, there was a giant forest with trees as tall as castles. On the other side, he could see the shadow of a high tower of white stone reaching into the sky.
Rent stood up slowly. He touched his chest—no knife wound hole.
No blood. No shortness of breath.
He was alive again. In a world that was not his.
"Okay... this is ridiculous," he muttered. His voice sounded clear. "Why is that God still insistent? Even though I wanted to disappear."
His eyes scanned the surroundings, seeing himself waking up in a strange world he didn't know at all.
"Haaah..." Rent let out a long sigh, his old signature style returning. "At least this place... is full of color. Colors so bright they annoy my vision."
A gentle wind blew, swaying his black hair and one small ahoge atop his head.
And for the first time since he almost gave up on life, Rent put on a thin smile, very thin—not because he was annoyed or happy... but because he felt this was a new joke from fate.
"That weird god... hmph."