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︾

Leon massaged the back of his neck, “Now, I feel strange to be alive.”

He looked beside; the woman had disappeared, “How can she even do that?”

Buring sensation curled around his eyes, “ouch, ouch, ouch.”

He rubbed his eyes, “ahh, my body, just behave normally, would you?”

As his eyes stopped burning, he recalled back, “Three dead under the bridge.”

An urban legend, a myth, a story passed from generation to generation.

‘Dead cannot be brought back to life.’

That is the very law of life. Yet throughout history, three people defied that law.

A woman dethroned, said to have been conspired against by her own kin. Killed in her sleep, her body cast out and buried under the bridge. Six months later, all those who conspired against her murdered in one night. No one knew how. Upon interrogating the servants, they all said. The woman returned, bearing black claws against her kin, with black wings and two horns, like a demon glittering under the moonlight.

Another legend told about the story of the broken man. Besieged in his own castle, murdered by the enemy’s soldier. 2 months later, the murdered man returned and massacred the men withholding the castle. The man now bore fangs on his teeth, feasted on the enemy’s blood. He turned into a bloodthirsty vampire.

To others, the stories were just a myth, but Leon knew the truth.

Leon, 17- years old, got assigned to take back the castle. When Leon arrived at the castle, the vampire did not resist. Right before Leon beheaded him, he had uttered few words. Back then, Leon failed to listen to the man’s whisper, but now he remembered.

“.. now…. It’s your turn.”

Leon pondered over those words. He glanced at his hands; they looked normal. But one simply doesn’t return to life, unaffiliated to any consequences.

He spread back on his bed, crossed his hands behind his head, and pondered.

“If I survived… I never really thought about it.”

“All I thought, the things I could not do, the things I did, the thought of a second chance never occurred once in my mind.”

“So, I should do the thing I could not do right,” He shook his head, “no, don’t feel like doing anything now.”

“Am I even happy about being alive?” He wondered, closing his eyes, “Under the rubbles, my story should have ended, the bed’s comfy, maybe I should..” “… sleep in here, forever.”

︽

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︾

His vision ushered him in a throne room of a castle. A body rested there, with its severed head. Blood brimmed out of its neck. A man stood by the corpse, gazing at it. It was Leon’s younger self.

“Huh! Where this?” Leon gazed younger self, then looked at his own body. It had a semi-transparent look on it. “What’s this? A memory fragment?”

Leon’s younger self bowed, searching the corpse, a black robe around his body, a grim headband on his head, a man too proud to wear armor. His body had light clothes and a sword attached around his waist.

The corpse he searched wore a long black coat.

Leon looked at his younger self. Inside the coat, he found a book. The book’s face embedded a crying demon’s skull face on its surface.

Leon’s eyes enlarged, “That book, the words written on it.”

Leon’s younger self opened the book and read the words in the book.

He could read only one line, “You, who deluged yourself, in the color of scarlet.”

Leon encircled his younger self  to a get a good view of the book.

This time he could read more than just one word. Under a line, out of the lines. He sighted his own name. Before he could read further of the text, his younger self turned the pages, “Hey, hey, I have not completely read it yet.”

His younger self skimmed through the pages as he could discern nothing. Leons could not read the text, “come on, slow down a little.” He waved his hands, but it just passed through his younger self’s body.

Leon’s vision hazed. Red fog covered the castle. His younger self disappeared, the castled faded. All but the red fog disappeared.

His leg felt the sensation of being grabbed. Looking down, he saw a hand gripping his leg—the hand of the headless corpse.

“Ahh,” Leon faltered, taken by it. The grip loosened, the corpse stood up.

Leon’s eyes spread wide. The corpse grabbed its head and raised it near the neck. Tissues spread out and reattached. Its eyes opened up; scarlet eyes gazed upon Leon. The head smiled and said, “It’s your turn.”

Chills passed down Leon’s spine.

His body faded.

His upper body sprang from the bed.

“What? What was that? A nightmare?” Leon gasped for breath

The corpse’s image became blurry in his head. Instead, his attention shifted towards the book he vividly remembered.

“I could not read it.”

He grasped his chin, “Think, what did I do with the book after that?”

“I handed the book for research. Later the kingdom handed the book to Vuvell Empire as a betrothal gift before the war.”

“Wait, isn’t this place inside that empire, hmm,” He lowered his head, “they must have stored the book somewhere inside the royal palace,” He tilted his head, “To infiltrate the palace, and take back the book just because I saw my name on it? Would the trouble be worth it?”

“but what if, it has answers about the things happening to me?” He shook his head, “Do I even care?” “What if I find the book, what if I find out I’m no more than a monster?”

“Then what?” “Fight for your nation, fight for your people, obey the king, serve the king, serve the empire, I had enough,” He looked at his body, “This body cannot even perform martial arts, maybe it’s betters this way,” A light smile brew on his face, “I will just become a cook.”

“And eat delicious food.”

“And maybe met women,” He blushed, “And maybe fall in love,” “And have children.”

“And die old.”

“Yeah, lets just do that.”

“forget the past and start anew.”

He clenched his muscles, “here comes a new beginning” He flipped his blanket and tried to stand.

Pains swirled around his leg, “ouch, ouch, ouch, ahh my leg.”

He huffed, “Need to find a way to heal this body first.”

Enduring excruciating pain in his leg, he stood up, “Such little pain, is of none concern, to a veteran of war” His facial muscles tightened. He lumbered through, walking step by step.

He finally reached the door. He breathed heavily, “Ha, piece of cake” He shook his head and looked around the corridor.

“Hello, is anyone here?” His voice echoed throughout the corridor.

He walked around; the rooms looked empty. Some barely had furniture. The wooden house creaked as he walked.

“The lady with the blindfold? The quivering kid, is anyone here?”

“No one.”

He reached down to the first floor.

“Did that lady go outside?”

He waddled, enduring the pain until he reached the front wooden door. He opened the sliding door to go outside.

The sun glowed. The wind caressed his skin. He could hear the breeze of a river. The sky was clear. It looked to be a peaceful day.

But….

The end of countless spears pointed towards him.

At the end of the spear, soldiers. Two red carriages rested in the garden.

Men wore archaic red armor. Near the carriages stood two tall and board men.

Their golden armor reflected the glaring sunlight.

Men had encircled the entire wooden house.

All stood in a besieged formation, yet not making a single sound or noise, some hiding among the trees, some hiding inside the river.

All of them awaiting further instructions.

Like a throng of hunters, silently awaiting their prey.

Leon, after opening the door, spotted them. They had the sigil of a dragon representing the Vuvell Empire.

The silent breeze and stiff placement of the soldiers just added tension to the environment

“Ahh, yes, just a typical day for a chef,” He whispered to himself.

‘should I run? No, with my leg escaping is…’

‘Wait, are they here to capture me? How did they find out I was here?’

‘my arms turned leaned, my body must have regressed by at least 30-40 years’

‘barely anyone knows how I looked during my younger days’

‘They won’t realize that I am the same man, who devastated their army in the war, right? Right?’

Leon stood their motionless

One of the men wearing the golden armor took off his golden helmet and spoke out, “For this war, much blood already spilled. Traitors, surrender now, we do not wish for bloodshed.”

He had a husky and silvery voice.

Leon’s eyes lit up when he heard the word traitor. Amidst the war, there formed a group that betrayed both Empires.

‘They are not here for me, that women…..’

‘She must have been a member of that group.’

Leon raised both of his hands,

“I peacefully surrender.”

Leon shouted

︽

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