The box was glowing.

The light reflected in his eyes as he stared at the papers within it. What used to be black ink turned gold, and the words written on them began to... float in the air.

'What the hell?'

Cale instinctively stepped back as the words swirled like a tornado, covering his face with his arms as a strong gust of wind blew which caused the papers to scatter.

Amidst the odd situation he found himself in, he only registered Igneel's warning cry at the last second.

"KYU!"

By then, it was too late to realize what was about to happen.

The swirling letters formed a line that pierced his head— no, it was more like, his brain was absorbing them.

His eyes widened, and it felt like he was watching a movie, witnessing what the boy in the letters had experienced, feeling what the boy felt when he wrote them.

"Ugh-!"

Cale held onto the nearest table for support.

He was forced to relieve a past he didn't want to remember.

Amidst twisted metal and shattered glass, he found himself trapped, unable to move. The air was thick with a scent that made his stomach churn, and the sound of his own sobs echoed against the wreckage. His small frame trembled with fear and confusion as he gazed at the woman in front of him, protecting him from the sharp surroundings.

"Rok Soo ya... It's okay... Mom is here, don't cry..." His mother's voice, strained with pain, cut through the chaos like a soothing melody. Despite the agony etched on her face, she gathered all her remaining strength to comfort her son.

"But Dad..." Rok Soo whimpered, his voice quivering.

"Dad is just sleeping, honey..." his mother's words faltered slightly, a tear escaping the corner of her eye as she spoke of his father, who lay motionless beside them.

"Oh, My dear Rok Soo... I love you, okay? We'll always be here for you... Remember... that..." Her voice was gentle, her consciousness fading away along with her whispers.

With tears streaming down his chubby cheeks and small wrenching sobs, little Rok Soo clung to his mother's hand, his tiny fingers intertwined with hers as the sound of an ambulance began to approach from a distance.

As Rok Soo sobbed in the empty hospital room, he mumbled, "Mom, you're a liar..."

Ever since that accident, he was always lonely.

"That's Kim Rok Soo, isn't it? He lost his parents in an accident."

'Are you sympathizing with me?'

"Poor thing. He's still so young. Who's going to take care of him now?"

' I don't need your sympathy.'

Even as the whispers occurred behind and around him, Rok Soo ignored them like a passing breeze. When he saw a leaf fly before his eyes, he looked up at the sky.

'... Dad would take me to get ice cream on a sunny day like this.'

Then suddenly, he found himself in a familiar place, the kindergarten, and everyone was raising their hands, chiming in one by one as he watched from the middle. His surroundings were noisy.

"I want to be a firefighter! Firefighters are heroes!"

"I'm gonna be a doctor who saves lives like my mom!"

"I love flying so I wanna be an astranut."

"It's astronaut, you poopy head."

"Hwan, no using bad words!"

"Yes, Seonsaeng-nim..."

Teacher Hyeon turned her head to look at the silent Kim Rok Soo with a smile of anticipation.

"Kim Rok Soo, how about you tell us your dreams?"

(Rok Soo ya, what do you want to be?)

"I... I want to be a main character."

(I want to be a main character, Mom! Like the cool people in the books you gave me!)

"A main character? Like in a movie?" Someone beside him asked with interest.

(So you want to be a hero, huh?)

"Ooh! You wanna be an actor? You have to be really popular for that, Rok Soo!" Another one chirped in.

(No, that sounds dangerous and I don't like dangerous things... But I want to at least be strong enough so I can protect you!)

"Hehe. Actor Kim Rok Soo! So cool!"

(And I'm sure you'll become just that, Rok Soo ya...)

He blinked expressionlessly.

"Kim Rok Soo, this is your uncle from your mother's side. He contacted us after finding out about your situation. You can live with him from now on, isn't that great news?"

Rok Soo looked up at the cheerful man, not saying anything, but from what he heard, this person who had been getting all mushy and sentimental with him held some sort of important position in society or child welfare something. Not that he understood any of it yet.

Then his uncle flashed him a bright grin.

"Hey, Rok Soo ya! I'm sorry for only arriving now. Your mother and I don't communicate very often so I only recently found out. She doesn't really like me," he laughed heartily before ruffling the little boy's hair affectionately, "But don't worry. No matter what, Uncle will take care of you from now on."

His Uncle...

His Uncle was here.

Kim Rok Soo wasn't... alone?

For the first time after that accident, Rok Soo felt hope, a feeling that maybe he was wrong about being unlucky...

Only for that same hope to be crushed to pieces just a few weeks later.

"Kim Rok Soo, you good-for-nothing! I know you stole the money!"

(Main characters tend to have sad backstories.)

Another shout that seemed to grow more present echoed through the walls of the messy house.

"I didn't! I really-!" Rok Soo's protest was cut short, drowned out by his uncle's relentless drunken anger.

(That's how they grew stronger.)

"Did your mom raise you to be a liar?! You won't be getting any allowances this week! And don't you dare think about stepping outside this door!"

Kim Rok Soo flinched when the door slammed closed.

Just like that night when the boy drowned in sorrows in the dark hospital room, he sobbed quietly into the pillow, curling on the thin mattress that made him shiver because of the cold floor.

(Their past experiences gave them strength.)

"Uncle, I'm sorry... Why won't you believe me...?"

It was after a while that he realized his uncle took him in only for the inheritance money.

And it was long after that Kim Rok Soo realized that his uncle had taken the money for himself and blamed him while acting betrayed to make him feel guilty.

"Uncle is also a liar..."

(So why is it that instead of feeling strong, all he could feel was helplessness?)

"Kim Rok Soo."

Rok Soo blinked upon hearing a familiar voice call for his name.

"Why don't you go play with your friends?" Teacher Hyeon approached him who sat alone in the room while the other kids decided to play outside, the distant sound of laughter and high-pitched shrieks could be heard.

"They don't like me," he muttered quietly, flipping on the page of the colorful book he was reading.

Teacher Hyeon seemed to frown at his words. "Why not?"

"They said I'm weird and that they'll get bad luck if they get close to me."

It was almost heartbreaking for the adult to hear such words easily coming out of a child's mouth.

Kim Rok Soo didn't seem to notice his teacher's growing concern. "... Rok Soo, that's not true-"

However, before she could say any words of comfort, he quietly cut off her words, slowly looking up from his book,

"Teacher, do you like me?"

The woman had to pause momentarily, staring into Kim Rok Soo's innocent eyes that should be holding the light as any other kid should, but instead, she was looking into an empty gaze.

However, she didn't miss the hope laced in his voice when he asked that question.

"Of course, I do!" Teacher Hyeon smiled gently. It reminded him of his mother. "You're a good kid, Rok Soo."

Kim Rok Soo looked down, hiding his suppressed smile and his eyes that threatened to tear up.

"... Then I'm glad."

A few days later, that same teacher he allowed himself to adore was never seen again.

"... Why?"

(Main characters are strong.)

"Why am I so alone?"

(Main characters would go on.)

"I don't want to be here anymore."

(He didn't want to be a main character anymore.)

Cale gasped when the memory finished playing. Being forced to remember something was something new that he didn't want to experience again.

However, he wasn't able to dwell for long about it when he saw something in front of his eyes. 

[ Record Acquired: 1% ]

[ Reward for Completion: ??? ]

'... What?'

..........

"What the hell?"

"HAHAHAHA, THAT'S RIGHT. BOW DOWN TO ME OR DIE!"

Kim Dokja stared blankly at the sight.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself on the rooftop of his workplace.

Or... what used to be his workplace?

Apparently, the place had completely changed into something he barely recognized, with a strange petite short-haired woman laughing on top of a throne seat and his ex-coworkers quivering and singing praises to her.

---

a/n: i almost died, sorry for the short chapter