Atticus pressed a hand against his pounding heart as he slipped through the side corridor of Liam's estate. The marble was cold under his feet, colder than it had any right to be, but not as cold as the panic crawling up his throat.
'I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't even exist here. If not for the story and my uncertain future….'
He wasn't supposed to be part of this story-this novel he had once skimmed through in another life, before something pulled him into the body of the Demon Lord's High Priest.
It had been a dark fantasy his sister had been obsessed with and as a result, he was forced to listen to. Had he known that he would be forced to reincarnate into the same book, he would have paid much more attention.
He had every intention of finding a way home…that is, before Liam found him.
His husband.
No-the male lead.
Atticus sucked in a shaking breath and pressed himself against the wall as servants passed near the end of the hall, their hushed voices drifting toward him.
"He escaped again?"
"And after everything the Hero has done for him-"
"He should be grateful he's allowed to live here-"
The words buried themselves in his chest, but he didn't stop. He couldn't.
If he paused, Liam might find him, and Atticus had nothing left to give that man. He had already spent almost a century with Liam, being humiliated in the worst way possible.
He had even given the man a son as his body betrayed him during his heat.
'All I want is freedom. I just want my own life…I want to return to a life where my body was my own.'
His fingers trembled as he pushed open the back door leading to the courtyard. Sunlight spilled onto the path, warm and bright.
And then he froze.
A small boy stood in the center of the yard, crouched beside a pot of blooming red flowers. His dark hair curled against his forehead. His small hands were stained with dirt. He hummed softly to himself-completely absorbed in arranging stones into a crooked little circle.
Sera.
Atticus's breath caught, his lungs straining.
'My son.'
The boy he had carried, birthed, and held with shaking hands the day he swore he would try to survive this world.
Sera looked up, eyes a vivid, clear blue….Liam's eyes. His little lips parted in confusion when he noticed Atticus standing there.
Atticus felt something tug at him. A simple, painful longing to be with his son.
He shouldn't…or rather, he couldn't.
Sera didn't even acknowledge him as a parent. The court had made sure of that.
Humans whispering poison, telling the child that Atticus was dangerous, unclean, unwanted. That the "chosen priestess," when she arrived, would be his true mother.
Even so, Atticus's heart moved before his mind did.
"…Sera…"
He whispered.
The boy looked startled to see him out and about. His small alpha fangs bit into his lower lips as they wobbled. The child wanted to say something, but ultimately decided not to and flinched instead.
Just a flinch-small, instinctive.
But it sliced deeper than any blade.
Before Atticus could say anything more, the nanny swooped in, gathering Sera into her arms. She pulled him close and shot Atticus a sharp, accusing glare, her posture protective, hostile.
'Ah, of course. They all see me as a threat to their young master. For them, I might as well be a stranger…'
"We will go inside now. There is no need for a young master to dirty his eyes with such a…filthy sight…"
The nanny said shortly.
"I didn't…"
Atticus tried, but the woman was already walking away, shielding Sera from his sight.
The boy looked over her shoulder just once-confused but not hateful. But that alone was enough to make Atticus stumble back a step.
His stomach twisted. His throat tightened.
"This is why…This is why I have to go….I don't belong here…"
He whispered to himself. He was finally going to return home. He had found a way to make that happen as well.
Before he could turn away, he heard someone call out-
"Atticus?"
His body went rigid.
That voice.
Liam stood in the archway leading to the gardens, armour absent, civilian clothing softening the sharp lines of his heroic figure. He looked tired-hair slightly tousled, eyes drawn with worry.
Worry for Sera, probably…or maybe the nanny. As a hero, he loved everyone in equal regard....and the Enigma who turned his life upside down.
Even now, Liam's gaze flickered past him first-searching for the child-before landing fully on Atticus.
"What are you doing out here?"
Liam asked, voice low.
Atticus didn't answer. Even if he wanted to answer, he was not sure the human would believe him.
Liam took a small step forward.
People near the courtyard slowed their movements. Their whispers rose again.
"Is he fighting with the Hero?"
"Why does he look like he's running?"
"Is the demon causing trouble again-?"
Atticus turned away sharply, heart thudding.
He couldn't breathe here. All these looks were too much. He just needed to get some fresh air and then come back.
Once outside the estate, he forced himself into a run.
Just a little farther. Just reach the forest path. Just enough distance so he could slip away, hide, maybe-maybe-find a life that didn't hurt this much.
But then-
"You darn demon Atticus!"
Boots slammed against the stone behind him.
Atticus skidded to a stop as a group of armored soldiers rushed down the slope toward him. Their commander's voice thundered across the clearing.
"Seize him!"
Atticus's heart dropped.
"No, wait-I wasn't escaping! I just went for a walk-I always walk in the mornings-"
"Lie all you want, you demon. But in the name of the god, it is my duty to eradicate the Demon Lord's last vessel. Our hero shall be freed by the filth that is tainting him."
The commander raised his spear, eyes glowing with zealous conviction.
Atticus felt the blood drain from his face.
"I'm not the Demon Lord. He died in the war. I was just his priest. Isn't it all over now?"
He said softly.
"You bear his mark and you are a demon. Did you really think demons and humans could ever co-exist? You are a danger that should have been eliminated years ago."
The commander's grip tightened around his weapon.
Atticus stepped back.
'Is this really happening…?'
He wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go. His only option was to look for his way back home. If his body won't make it, he would make sure his soul made it back home.
He wanted-just once-to have a system, a guide, something to tell him what his role was, what he needed to do to survive this damn story.
But there was nothing. He never got any help and no one knew how to send him back either.
Only the cold realization that he was a background character at best. A leftover piece from the villain's side of the story.
He swallowed, hands trembling.
"Please…Don't. I won't cause trouble. I don't want to be part of this world anymore. Just let me go quietly. I will make sure never to appear in front of you ever again."
He whispered.
The commander's eyes softened for a fraction of a second, before they hardened again.
"Didn't our people ask the same when you killed them in war? This is just retribution."
The commander told me and that felt really unfair. A war was a two-side affair. Besides, Atticus was a high priest, and his only purpose had been to heal others. He had healed as many humans as he had demons.
But no one wanted to listen to a bug like him talk.
The soldiers charged.
Atticus flinched back, raising his arms in instinctive defense. Pain cut across his side as a blade struck. Another tore across his shoulder.
He stumbled, breath escaping him in a sharp gasp.
He heard shouting. Someone calling his name. Liam's voice-desperate, afraid.
"Atticus, NO-!"
Atticus didn't know if Liam was calling for him or just reacting to the chaos.
But as another blow landed, Atticus's knees buckled. The force of it pushed him backward, toward the edge of the cliff behind the path.
He saw the valley below. Endless. Dark. Waiting.
The commander lunged again.
And Atticus knew, in one hollow, strangely calm moment:
'This is where my story ends.'
He let himself fall.
Liam's hand reached for him, just too late.
"Atticus!!!"
The world tilted. Wind tore past his ears. His vision blurred.
'So this is it…'
Maybe now he could rest.
Maybe now he could go home.
His eyes closed.
Darkness swallowed everything.
"Don't you dare close your eyes, Atticus. You cannot leave me and your child alone. We promise… we promise we will find you in your next life… and then you will never escape us again."
Those desperate words were the last thing Atticus heard as he took his final breath-and the very thing that chilled him to the bone.
'Ah my dear son…I hope you grow up happy…'
…
…
…
Warmth.
Soft. Gentle. Impossible.
Atticus's fingers twitched.
A breath that shouldn't exist dragged into his lungs.
His eyes opened.
He wasn't lying broken on rocks.
He was-
Small.
His hands were tiny. His clothes unfamiliar. The sky above him was no longer the sky of the Hero's land.
He pushed himself up on unsteady arms, pulse racing.
'I'm alive?'
A rustle sounded beside him.
Atticus turned sharply.
Another child sat only a few feet away-dark-eyed, bright-faced, staring at him with shock and… joy?
Atticus's heart thudded.
'I've been reborn.'
And he wasn't alone.