The Author's POV

'What did I just see?'

Kevin felt his heart grow cold.

'T...that can't be real, right? Re..n would never do that...'

He was in a state of complete denial. But, it was at this moment that he suddenly recalled his past flashbacks of what Ren had done with Emma, and it was from there that he was able to calm himself down.

'That's not the Ren I know. It's a different Ren.'

He repeatedly told himself. Recalling the conversation he had with Ren in the past and connecting everything with his visions, things were slowly starting to make sense.

'Why is it dark?'

Following his death, the scene once again shifted. This time, the world was dark. However, upon paying close attention, he could hear the sound of birds chirping in the distance.

Chirp. Chirp. Chirp.

'Birds? What's going on?'

Kevin could faintly feel the warm, gentle sunshine enveloping his whole body.

It was then that Ren opened his eyes and Kevin found himself inside a one-bedroom apartment.

Rubbing his eyes, he blinked a couple of times and once more looked at my strange surroundings.

'This place...'

It looked familiar. Kevin couldn't just quite remember where he had seen this room before.

The room was furnished with the basic necessities that comprised a clean white bed, an old wooden spacious desk, a tall wardrobe, and a small bathroom. It was neither too big nor too small, but it seemed to have all the necessary facilities one might need when living.

'...Just why is this so familiar to me?'

Kevin thought to himself as he continued to stare at the room. It was strange, but Kevin knew for sure that he had seen this room before.

...But no matter how much he tried to think about it, he couldn't exactly remember where he had seen it.

'How odd.'

Shifting his body, Kevin's head turned to face the nearby window.

Reflected on it was a familiar face.

Jet black hair

Pale white skin

Blue ocean-like eyes

It was Ren's face...but younger. A lot younger.

'What memory is this?'

Kevin wondered as Ren's body shifted and he pressed his foot on the ground to help his body up.

"...Another failure."

Ren muttered while he stood up, and headed for the nearby desk where he sat down.

Opening the drawer beside the desk, he took out a small notebook alongside a small pen.

Grasping the pen beside him, Ren's body froze for a small second. With his eyes locked onto the pen, he slowly brought it next to his neck.

Click—!

Pressing onto the top end of the pen, the sharp tip came out.

Ren gently pressed it against his neck. Slowly, he began to put more pressure.

'What is he doing?'

Kevin wondered as he felt the sharp tip of the pen press against Ren's neck. His actions didn't make sense to Kevin at all.

'Don't tell me that he's...'

"Haaa..."

Before Kevin could come up with an assumption, Ren let out a long sigh and lowered the hand that held onto the pen. The pressure on his neck disappeared.

Casually tossing the pen on the desk, Ren reclined on the chair and emptily stared at the white ceiling of the room.

Grasping his chest with his hand, he mumbled.

"...What's the point? It's not like anything will change."

Though his words were casual, they were enough to alarm Kevin who was watching everything.

At this point, no matter how much he tried to feel the emotions Ren was experiencing, he couldn't feel anything. He basically felt like an empty shell whose sole reason for living was something that Kevin was still unsure of...but from his earlier actions, Kevin had an inkling that perhaps, just maybe, Ren didn't really want to be alive.

It was as if something was stopping him from dying. Or maybe he was just overthinking.

...but as he thought back at the moment he pressed the pen against his neck, Kevin was left uncertain about his theory.

Leaning his body forward, Ren grasped the pen he had thrown on the table and opened the book.

He then began to write something.

turmoil. Assessing the situation, I decided

through what Ren was writing, Kevin felt his blood freeze. Chills ran through his body as he had a hard time processing what Ren

'I..it can't be, right?'

in a state of denial, but...he knew that everything

was no point in his denying anything. He had already figured everything out after connecting the dots from his vision...yet, a small part of him still wished that this

was only wishful thinking on

but he was still nonetheless Ren. A stinging

'...Why? Just why?'

[Trial 210]

his pen, Ren continued to

in the previous loop before he comes in contact with them in this loop. Same goes for my family. It's better

into the paper, the world started to shift, and a red sky enshrouded

everywhere as corpses and limbs sprawled

silence enshrouded

"Haa...haa..."

top of a broken building, as the sound of his rough breathing broke the silence

'Where am I?'

he looked around him. It was also then that he noticed that his

scene. It

Kevin suddenly

his eyes laid on a figure who

on a broken building, the figure blankly stared

no use, you won't

rang throughout the world as he

the world seemed to have come to a standstill as demonic

"Stay put."

Kevin felt his

Crack. Crack.

as the ground crushed against his body, resulting in a crater to

was, the red-eyed figure was completely unfazed as he gazed

deepened as their gazes met. Opening his mouth, he

your useless struggle.

"Shut up."

him pulverized into bits. The gravity around him started to warp, and the buildings

Rumble. Rumble.

His power was overwhelming.

a figure resembling himself standing in the distance, and it was

'This scene...'

"Your turn."

downwardly, Ren kept the other

contain the other figure for long as he felt his hand start to

waiting

felt Ren's mouth open once again as he urged his other self who was standing in the distance. His voice sounded a little

Kevin's lips trembled after glancing at the red-eyed figure and then looking at

outcome

are you

brows furrowed tightly,

his teeth, the other Kevin pointed

the world. It's completely destroyed! Almost all of humanity has been destroyed because of your actions, and yet, you

the other Kevin's fists clenched tightly, his voice

him! You decided to sacrifice the whole of humanity! What's the

Ren slowly opened his mouth to say something. Matching his mouth, Kevin spoke

'Because I don't care.'

"...Because I don't care."

was at this point that Kevin finally understood why felt a sense of Deja vu'

saw in his vision. He

"You don't care?"

that sprang out of his body

don't care about the fact that because of

"What are you doing?"

voice

to the space next to him and

I should've done the

Clank. Clank.

up from the ground and Kevin felt them clasp

time, Kevin felt Ren's face crack when he looked at

do you think you're

his body try to move, but no matter how much force he applied, he couldn't move. A

a predicament he was,

did you do

the other white figure who was watching the scene with an amused look on his face. Although he was also on the verge of death, there was a triumphant look

looks like it's going

his teeth, the other Kevin proceeded to

"khh..."

body slowly started to

Kevin suddenly started to

him now, end this now! End it!!!! You know full well that

'Desperation.'

what Kevin felt as he

the same

the other Kevin's feet came to a pause a couple of meters away from

Clank. Clank. Clank.

Kevin felt the chains wrapping around his body become more and more numerous, before they completely wrapped his

couldn't reach the other Kevin, Kevin realized that Ren had stopped shouting and the previous

glaring in the other Kevin's direction, Kevin felt

will be enough

"I don't know."

Kevin shook his

least for