Chapter 10
Ren stared at the floating screen as the air around him suddenly grew heavier.
NEW SYSTEM NOTICE
MISSION QUEST UNLOCKED
Return to Origin Archives
Objective: Return to original Universe and uncover the truth about your parents.
Reward: Unknown
Failure: Unknown
Warning: This mission cannot be abandoned once accepted.
Do you wish to accept this quest?
YES NO
Ren's eyes widened.
"...What the hell?"
Another universe?
The thought crashed into him so hard his brain nearly went blank
Wait is this some kind of sci-fi or something?
He turned sharply toward Sylva.
"Oi—what does that mean? Another universe?"
Sylva let out a quiet sigh. For a moment, she looked away, as if debating whether to continue hiding the truth.
"Well?" Ren snapped. "Are you going to answer me or not?"
"The answer should already be obvious enough for even you to understand, idiot," Sylva replied coldly.
Then her expression softened slightly.
Sigh
"But since you insist on hearing it from me... yes."
Her gaze locked onto his.
"We are not from this universe."
The words struck Ren like a physical blow.
His mind froze how his mind raced, this was the world he had always known and the city he grew up in the sky he looked at every morning and the streets he walked every day.
Everything here was real to him
So how could none of it truly be his world?
"W-Wait..." His voice shook. "What are you trying to say can you try to explain properly."
Sylva remained silent for a few seconds before finally speaking again.
"Your mother..."
Ren's breath caught.
"She ....
She was a being of unimaginable power a being feared by countless existences."
"My... mother wait what are you saying ?" Ren whispered.
"Yes," Sylva said quietly. "Your mother was the first Kurokami to appear in over five hundred years."
Ren stared at her blankly.
"It sounds absurd, doesn't it?" Sylva continued. " But it's true, a Kurokami is born only once every five or six centuries. According to legend, every Kurokami inherits fragments of the memories and lives of those who came before them."
It was a never ending cycle passed every five to six hundred years
Ding....
A black screen suddenly flickered into existence before Ren.
SYSTEM NOTICE
Player memories are being altered prior to quest acceptance.
Do you wish to block external interference?
YES NO
Ren's pupils shrank.
"...What?"
His heartbeat quickened.
Can the System actually hear everything I'm hearing?
He clenched his fists...
"But I don't understand!" Ren shot back. "How does any of this explain why I'm not from this world?!"
Sylva stared at him quietly before letting out a small sigh.
"When a Kurokami dies, their soul does not disappear," she explained softly. "It reincarnates."
Ren frowned.
"Each new Kurokami inherits fragments of the previous ones, their memories... their experiences... sometimes even their fragments of their power."
Her golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"They become guardians guiding the next successor."
Ren stayed silent.
"As for your mother," Sylva continued, " she was the strongest Kurokami in recorded history."
She was the first to posses every strength, and abilitiy a kuroõkami had, she was a God from the shadows.
The room felt colder.
"But after she gave birth to you the impossible happened."
Ren's heartbeat quickened.
"You inherited the power of the Kurokami."
Silence.
"For millions of years, the cycle remained absolute because power passed only through reincarnation after death , the kuroõkami spirit takes five to six hundred years to completely reincarnate. Its power cannot be passed through birth."
Sylva's expression darkened.
"But you... broke that law simply by being born."
Ren froze.
"The moment you came into existence, the balance of the cycle shattered."
A chill crawled down his spine.
"According to your mother even the spirits of the previous Kuroõkami's had no answer for what you were."
You inherited no past life you were simple a power juicer
Before Ren could respond, Sylva looked away.
"And then the gates appeared."
"...Gates?" Ren repeated.
"yes gates tears in reality," Sylva said grimly.
"Portals connecting worlds that should never have touched."
Her voice lowered.
"And from them... other beings known as monsters began flooding into our universe."
The screen suddenly flickered into existence before Ren once again.
SYSTEM NOTICE
Player memories are being altered prior to quest acceptance.
Do you wish to block external interference by altering memory?
YES NO
Ren's eyes widened.
"Shit... the System can actually interfere with my memories?"
Sylva looked at the Ren silently before letting out a quiet sigh.
"I suppose I was never meant to tell you the truth until we returned to our world."
She turned toward him.
"If that's the case... then we leave immediately."
Ren blinked.
"Huh?"
His face twisted with disbelief.
"W-Wait. Leave? Like right now?"
"Yes," Sylva replied calmly. "Right now."
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Ren snapped. "You seriously expect me to abandon everything and go to some universe I know nothing about?!"
His voice shook.
"I have friends here. I have a life here."
His fists clenched.
"I already disappeared for two weeks. I even missed my best friend's birthday..."
His breathing became uneven.
" and now they probably think I'm dead."
I can't....
"Are you an idiot?!" Sylva suddenly shouted.
Ren froze.
"Do you even understand what's at stake?!"
The air around her trembled violently.
"Do you have any idea what your mother had to sacrificed to protect you?!"
To put you in a world knowing she would die
Ren's eyes narrowed as his breath caught in his throat.
Sylva stared directly into him.
"The reason you were attacked..."
Her voice dropped.
"...is because a powerful being has been searching for you ever since your mother sealed the crack between worlds."
A chill ran down Ren's spine.
"That monster fought your mother long ago," Sylva continued. "And it has waited seventeen years for another tear in reality to open... just to reach this world."
The System screen flickered again.
SYSTEM NOTICE
Player memories are being altered prior to quest acceptance.
Do you wish to block external interference?
YES NO
" sigh your uncle knew this day would come," Sylva said quietly. "That's why I'm here to protect you."
Her expression darkened.
"I may have stopped the first attack."
She stepped closer.
"Next time... we may not be so lucky."
"But...."
"No." Sylva cut him off instantly. For a moment, silence filled the room, then her expression softened slightly.
"I'm sorry, Ren-sama."
Her voice became quieter.
"My purpose is to protect you, and to serve your best interests."
She lowered her eyes.
"But I cannot do that while you remain in this world."
Ren looked away, frustration and fear mixing together.
"I can't just leave..." he said weakly. "My friends... they don't even know where I am."
Sylva closed her eyes briefly before answering.
"It is better for them to worry... than for them to die."
The words struck harder than any scream could.
"There are beings in our world far beyond anything this planet can handle," she said softly.
"If they discover you are here... they will slaughter anyone standing near you just to reach you."
Her gaze drifted toward the city lights outside.
"The longer we stay here...the more danger this world faces."
Then she looked back at him.
"Especially the people you care about."
Ren lowered his head, running a hand through his hair.
"Look... I get it, alright?" she muttered quietly. "I do."
Sylva slowly walked toward him.
"But we need to leave," she said softly. "And we need to leave now if you truly care about your friends then we need to go."
Ren let out a long breath.
"Can't I at least say goodbye?"
Sylva hesitated,then she closed her eyes briefly.
"I'm sorry, Ren-sama... but there's no time for goodbyes."
Ding ....
The screen appeared before him once again.
MISSION QUEST UNLOCKED
Return to Origin Archives
Objective: Return to the Original Universe and uncover the truth about your parents.
Reward: Unknown
Failure: Unknown
Warning: This mission cannot be abandoned once accepted.
Do you wish to accept this quest?
YES NO
Ren stared silently at the screen.
Then back at Sylva, for a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Finally, Ren let out a quiet sigh.
"...Can I at least look at this world one last time?"
Sylva stared at him for a moment.
Then, unexpectedly, she smiled faintly.
"Alright if that's what you want," she said softly.
"Then I know just the view."