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 clenched my

you just what happens when a pawn does not move the

doing was being directly predicted and controlled by him,

just going to let someone manipulate

with the aid of the wall, I

fact that I was still low in mana, having recuperated some of it in the

my feet came to a sudden stop. My

you

other side

lay on him, I was instantly taken

wrong with

was looking at me. It didn't feel

hand, Kevin pointed

"You."

Kevin spoke.

sounded

his direction, I tried to figure out what was going

Are you

must still be haunting him. Perhaps he came here to train and get his mind

took a step forward, he took

"Don't come any closer."

"What's wrong?"

taken aback

confusion in me only grew as he

suddenly opened his

to

asked, his face

I stopped moving and nodded

"Ask."

on a

you have anything to ask you can just ask me. I will

"Okay…"

nodded

my eyes,

you have any part

"...eh?"

and the smile on my face quickly receded. Lowering his head and staring at me from the top of his eyes, Kevin

have any part in what happened

"W…what?"

figure something

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

my heart started to speed

at him, I

you think

anything, Kevin took out his tablet and turned on the holographic function where a replay of Emma's

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

look

Kevin pointed his finger

you send Ren your greetings for

as his cold

heart sank at those

'Shit...'

the video stopped playing, Kevin put the tablet away. Tilting

said that Aaron shouldn't have remembered anything, yet why did he suddenly say

"That…"

meeting his gaze,

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

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

in order to get out of the other Ren's influence,

that I would reveal everything to Kevin. Regarding the matter about my reincarnation, and all the fucked up shit I

knew that in order to escape his influence, I had to

really was

a

took a step

"Wait, Kevin."

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

hurtling in my direction like a

'Damn it!'

too late for me to speak, gritting my teeth, I pressed my foot on the ground and sidestepped,

small amount of mana I had in my hand, I softly placed my palm on his abdomen. My

Booom—

his back crashed against the side of the wall. From where I was standing I could hear a muffled groan coming from out of his