As the pain in my head fades, my breathing evens out.
I slowly push myself up and sit at the edge of the bed. At that moment, it feels like I'm drowning in my own thoughts.
"It's as if I've lived through those memories myself."
I narrow my eyes, staring at my fingers, trying to think. I search for a logical explanation. But there isn't one.
How did I get here?
These memories… what are they?
I need to calm down.
Taking a deep breath, I stay still for a few minutes.
I need to think. I need to analyze these memories.
These names… The Pendragon family… The half-blood child… His mother… A forgotten castle…
A sudden chill runs down my spine. I press my hands against my knees, trying to gather my thoughts.
I know this world.
Because I've seen it before.
In a novel.
Dark Lands.
It was a story I read during my holidays. Exactly 300 chapters long. A dark fantasy world filled with wars, conspiracies, and betrayals.
But there's a problem.
This place—this castle—the Pendragon family…
They didn't exist in the novel.
Not even once.
I never expected to become a side character in some ridiculous story. But here I am.
And it's been five years since I read that novel. I've forgotten almost everything about it. Only a few scenes, a few names… That's all.
Yet now, I find myself trapped inside a story I once read.
I try to make sense of it. I look around. Everything I touch feels real. I take a deep breath. The scent in the air, the sensation on my skin… Everything is too vivid.
In the end, I have no choice but to accept the truth.
I am in someone else's body.
I stand up. My stomach churns, and something tightens in my throat. I look at my hands. Foreign. I look at the mirror. An unfamiliar face stares back at me.
Every cell in my body rejects it.
This is not me.
A wave of nausea hits me.
"…Disgusting."
I have never wanted something that wasn't mine. I built my success with my own hands. I forged my strength, my name, my existence with my own will.
But now?
I don't even own myself.
I stand there for a long time. Thinking. Searching for a way out.
But no matter how much I think, one truth remains unchanged:
I cannot accept this.
At last, I make my decision.
I bring my hand to my chest.
If this heart doesn't belong to me, then I must get rid of it.
I press my fingers into my chest. At first, my skin stretches. Then, it splits open.
There is no pain. I don't even question it.
I go deeper.
A warm, wet sensation coats my fingers. Blood seeps from the wound, but even that doesn't feel real.
I reach further. Until I grasp it.
My heart.
Now—
"Omicron Fatal Arts, Technique Eight: Heart Extraction."
I open my palm, tighten my grip, and with one final motion—
I rip it out.
A heart beats in my hands.
But… something is wrong.
I narrow my eyes.
I should be dead.
My heart is in my hands, yet I'm still breathing.
How?
Then, before my eyes, the heart slowly begins to fade. Like a shadow, disappearing into nothingness.
At the same time, the wound on my chest seals itself. As if nothing ever happened.
I press a hand to my chest again. My heart is still there.
Why… am I still alive?
No. This has to be a mistake.
I do it again.
This time, I plunge my fingers into my chest with even more force, tearing through muscle and veins.
Once more, I rip my heart out.
But I don't stop there.
I clutch it between both hands and crush it.
Warm flesh, veins oozing blood—it all slips through my fingers, falling to the floor.
And then…
Everything disappears.
No blood. No flesh.
And my body?
Just like before, it returns to normal.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Every time, the same thing happens.
I destroy myself with my own hands, yet I always return to the way I was.
Unless…
Could this be one of those damned Fate Abilities from this shitty novel?
If so… it makes sense.
In the novel, Fate Abilities naturally awaken at a certain age, and their core functions reveal themselves instinctively.
Then, I need to look into this body's memories.
I close my eyes.
I dive deep into the sea of recollections.
The things he learned, the moments he lived
I search through the deepest corners of his mind.
And finally—
I find the answer I was looking for.