Inside the grand library of an ancient mansion, a young boy sat behind a table surrounded by towering bookshelves that stretched to the ceiling.
The boy looked about five years old. His deep, jet-black hair covered his forehead, and his piercing grey eyes remained focused on the book he was reading.
But the most striking feature was his expression. His face remained a mask of perfect calm, and his grey eyes conveyed no emotion.
After several hours of reading, Daniel closed the book with a sigh.
'Still nothing, what a waste.'
Then he leaned back as he closed his eyes.
'Just what is it? All I need is a small hint.'
Five years had passed since the day he woke up to this new reality, yet he still had no clue about what had caused it all.
'Though I do have some guesses.'
He had made many assumptions about why he had been reborn this way. Over the past five years, some of those assumptions had developed into concrete theories.
'Maybe I'm inside some sort of game or story.'
That seemed to be the most logical assumption. He had been reading a web comic that day, and he had even criticized it. He may have fallen into the world of that story, or any other story, for that matter.
Although the theory sounded absurd, his rebirth itself was already beyond reason. If he wanted to understand it, he had to be willing to consider the illogical.
'But I have no proof to base this theory on.'
With his hard work over these five years, he had collected several pieces of information. One of the most significant pieces of information he had gained was the name of this world.
It was called Regnum Aetern.
It confirmed that he indeed wasn't on Earth, but in a completely different world. More than that, he had never heard the name Regnum Aetern, so it seemed unlikely that he was inside the world of a story he knew.
'Still, I can't rule it out completely just yet.'
His second theory was that he had died somehow and reincarnated, but with his memories intact. But for some reason, his memories after going to sleep were missing.
'This is a reasonable theory, but it's also the least likely one.'
After all, he was almost certain that between going to sleep and waking up as a baby, there were no incidents in the middle. He had a strong feeling that his memories were complete.
Besides, this theory included a chain of coincidences. Him dying, him being reborn with his memories intact, him not being able to remember only the memory related to his death. It was highly improbable for so many coincidences to happen back-to-back like this.
The last—and most disturbing—theory was that:
'Someone intentionally brought me into this world.'
And if this was indeed true, then that entity must have some sort of goal they wanted to achieve through him. They could even be watching him right now.
'But if that is indeed what happened, then… why me specifically?'
Daniel knew that he wasn't special. He had no special powers or talents that set him apart from anyone else. He was as ordinary as a person could be.
There was absolutely nothing that would warrant choosing him when one had billions of people to choose from.
'And if it's such an entity that could reincarnate people, no ordinary person from Earth should be worthy of their attention.'
He stood up with the book in hand and began navigating the maze of towering bookshelves. The level of precision in his navigation almost felt as if it were natural to him.
Within moments, he got out of that maze and headed towards the library's reception. An old man stood behind the reception desk, sorting through piles of documents.
But as soon as he noticed Daniel, his behavior shifted.
He stopped and put the papers back on the pile, straightening his back as a polite smile stretched over his face.
"Young Master Adrian, how may I help you?"
That was his new name, or more precisely, the name of the body he was in.
Adrian put the book down on the table and spoke in a slightly commanding tone.
"I've finished this. You may put it back. Also, find me books on the history of the Feralscar Domain. I will read them the next time I visit the library."
Saying that, he turned around and left through the door, without even waiting for the old librarian's answer.
As Adrian strolled through the mansion's hallway with his tiny feet, the anxiety that he had buried in his heart reared its head back up, even stronger than before.
'Why? Just why can't I find even a single clue?!'
By this point, he didn't really care how he had gotten reincarnated into this world. He just wanted confirmation.
…confirmation that his third theory was wrong.
He was okay with it if this was the world of a story. It also wouldn't matter to him if he had died and reincarnated.
What terrified him was that someone had intentionally brought him into this world; this thought had been eating away at him for those five years.
'An entity capable of reincarnating someone… I can hardly comprehend such a being, let alone retaliate against it.'
As more and more time passed, he felt as if an invisible chain was slowly tightening around his neck.
The entity hadn't given Adrian a choice before reincarnating him. A being like that couldn't possibly have good intentions.
The day may soon arrive when he is forced to do their bidding.
As he walked, his eyes wandered across the massive hallway. From the red carpet on the floor to the paintings and ornaments hanging on the walls, it all gave a gothic, ancient feel.
From what Adrian had gathered from his time spent within the library, this world resembled the typical fantasy settings that he had commonly seen in games and web comics.
'It's just that… no detail matches my knowledge.'
It could be that he had fallen into a story he had never read, but it would make no sense for him to be dragged into a story he had no connection to.
After a minute or so of walking, he finally reached his room.
'Huh?'
But he noticed a detail that made him tilt his head in confusion.
It was the maid standing beside his room's door; she wasn't the one who was supposed to stand there.
In this mansion, all family members were assigned their own personal servants. These servants existed solely for their master's needs; they had no other tasks.
The one standing beside that door should be his own personal maid. She was the maid he saw when he first woke up in this world.
But she was nowhere to be seen, and a maid who wasn't even a personal servant was standing in her position.
Adrian stood still for a moment, then walked up to the maid. When he spoke, his tone carried the same authority he had used with the librarian.
"You seem to be standing in the position where my personal maid should be, and I don't even see her around. Explain why."
His voice prompted her to look down. As soon as she noticed Adrian standing near her, she bowed deeply, which didn't really feel like a bow considering how small he was. She still seemed to be towering above him.
"I was ordered to deliver a message to you, Young Master Adrian. Your personal maid is covering for me while I wait for you.
'Well, you could've come to the library to deliver the message, why wait here?'
"Who is this message from?"
Hearing that question, the maid's attitude became a little more polite and respectful. With her head down, she answered.
"It's from the lady of the house, I mean… from your mother."
Hearing the word "mother" made him pause.
'What does she want this time? It better not be another headache.'
After hesitating slightly, he ordered.
"Convey it."
"You are to meet the lady in her chamber for discussion. As soon as you can."