The Author's POV

Raising his hand, Kevin knocked on the door of Ren's apparent.

To Tok—

However, upon knocking on the door he was met with no response.

To Tok—

Frowning, Kevin knocked once again. But, yet again, he was met with no response.

'Is he not back yet? Could he perhaps be training?'

Although Ren seemed like a slacker he was in fact someone who worked hard, therefore, Kevin quickly came to the assumption that he was training at the moment. Well, at least to him, that was the most probable location of where he could be.

As his thoughts paused there, he started hesitating.

'Should I? ...or should I not?'

If he was training, then he didn't really want to disturb him. He knew just how annoying it was when someone interrupted him in the middle of his training.

"Screw it."

But after thinking things through, he decided to go anyways.

He desperately needed answers.

The doubts that were rising within him were starting to eat at his sanity.

He had to deal with them right now.

And so, after once again checking to see if Ren was present in the room or not, Kevin decided to head to the training grounds.

***

At the same time.

Opening my eyes, I found myself back in the training room.

Di—! Di—!

[00 : 00]

What followed after was the repetitive sound of the alarm ringing, signaling that the training session was over. What followed after was a subtle clicking sound and the door opened.

"haaa...haaa..."

Leaning my head back, I breathed heavily.

At the moment my mana was completely drained and I had trouble moving my body.

As I had left my bracelet back in my apartment, I did not have anything to refuel my mana with. This was a precaution I took in the chance that the other Ren took over my body.

Fortunately, nothing happened, but I didn't want to take the risk.

Closing my eyes, instead of leaving the room I remained seated and channeled the mana in the surroundings towards myself.

As I was recuperating my mana, I started thinking back on my experience.

'Looks like I was right, Monarch's indifference is not a simple skill.'

For me to suddenly be brought to a weird void the moment I activated the skill, I could tell that there was now more to it than it looked on the surface.

My apprehension towards it grew even more.

Not only that but the fact that I was somehow able to get the skill made me question reality. Did I really get the skill by simple coincidence? ...If so it wouldn't make sense. How could such a skill suddenly fall in my hands like that?

The more I thought about it, the more questions I had.

But if there was one thing I was now certain about, it was the fact that I was being manipulated.

Whoever the other Ren was, he was trying to make me act like he wanted to. Disgust washed over me as my thoughts paused there and my eyes opened.

'Is this how others feel when I manipulate them?'

Disgusting.

Scratching the side of my head till my hair became messy, I coldly muttered.

"...Want to treat me as a pawn?"

I

so be it, use me as a pawn. I'll show you just what happens when a pawn does not move the way that

being directly predicted and controlled by him, then

wasn't just going to let someone manipulate

my body up with the aid of the wall,

low in mana, having recuperated some of it in the meantime, it was now

came to a sudden stop. My

you

me, all the way towards the other side of the entrance of

my eyes lay on him, I

wrong

was looking at me. It

his hand, Kevin pointed it

"You."

Kevin spoke.

words sounded

direction, I tried to figure out what was going

on? Are you still worried

from what happened to Emma must still be haunting him. Perhaps he came here to train and get his

as I took a step forward, he took a step

"Don't come any closer."

"What's wrong?"

taken aback by his

me only grew as he continued to stare in

that he suddenly

to

his face was extremely

confused, I stopped moving

"Ask."

put on a friendly

ask you can just ask

"Okay…"

nodded

deeply into my eyes,

you have any part in what

"...eh?"

face quickly receded. Lowering his head and staring at me from the

have any part in what happened to

"W…what?"

he figure

Ba...thump! Ba...thump!

my heart started

at him, I

makes you think

and turned on the holographic function where

finger across the hologram, the video changed and it soon paused at the time where Aaron stabbed Emma in

a look at Aaron's

footage, Kevin pointed

you send Ren

as his cold voice rang

heart sank at

'Shit...'

the video stopped playing, Kevin put the tablet away.

Aaron shouldn't have remembered anything, yet

"That…"

meeting his gaze, I really didn't know

tell him that someone inside of me is trying to manipulate me and Kevin to do his bidding? Would he believe me when I

to find a way to explain to him what was going on. But I knew that I had to

I've said before, in order to get out of the other Ren's influence, I had to do something that

couldn't possibly predict that I would reveal everything to Kevin. Regarding the matter about

I had to do something that I would

really was

could say anything, a powerful aura suddenly

his powerful aura, I took a step back and raised

"Wait, Kevin."

already too late. With a loud 'bang' Kevin's body suddenly disappeared before reappearing right in

saw his fists hurtling in my direction like a cannonball. What followed his fist

'Damn it!'

to speak, gritting my teeth, I pressed my foot

I had in my hand, I softly placed my palm on his abdomen. My movement was

Booom—

his back crashed against the side of the wall. From