The Author's POV

Fear.

An unpleasant and inescapable emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain, or harm.

It begins with your hair standing up. Next, your palms begin to sweat, and your body experiences a wave of nausea, making it difficult for you to comprehend what lies before you.

The world feels foggy. Everything that seemed so clear the previous moment becomes blurry, and in an instant, your entire body begins to tremble, and your heart beats so loudly inside of your head that it feels suffocating.

Fear starts off as an instinctive and primitive response designed to help us avoid dangerous situations.

…But what would happen when you're in a situation where you can't avoid this so called danger?

Helplessness.

That was what they would feel.

A wave of helplessness would wash over the individual as they find themselves in a situation where they could do nothing.

"Don't tell me you're planning on leaving right as I arrived?"

Jezebeth's words echoed inside of my ears, while the hair at the back of my neck stood up.

Fear was slowly starting to permeate my body.

"Haaa…haa…"

Unknowingly, my breathing became heavier.

As I slowly lifted my head up, my eyes met Jezebeth's, and my heart stopped for a moment.

'S..shit.'

I was overcome with a wave of helplessness as his presence completely enveloped my body, stopping me from moving at all.

"Hm?"

In the midst of my struggle, Jezebeth frowned.

Coming a little closer to me, he tilted his head a little.

"You…"

He pointed his slender finger in my direction, as his glaring red eyes scrutinized my body up and down.

My body felt completely naked as his eyes scanned it. It was as if he knew every secret inside my body.

Gradually, as he continued to stare at me, his eyes dropped and his head shook.

"…You're not him, again."

There were hints of disappointment in his voice as he turned his head to look away from me.

Right as he turned, I was able to hear his soft whisper.

"He would never make such an expression…"

Taking a step away from me, he looked around the room and continued to whisper to himself.

"This is strange…I'm sure I detected his presence before coming here. I don't think I'm wrong."

For the next couple of seconds, he didn't say anything and just quietly walked around the room with a pensive look on his face.

Coming to a sudden stop, he turned around to look at me.

Once again scanning my body, his brows jumped and a thin smile formed on his face.

"I see…"

Tap.

Taking a step closer to me, it didn't take long for him to arrive before me.

Extending his hand, my vision darkened as his plan covered my face.

I tried with all my might, staring at the hand that was snatching at my face, but it was all in vain; he stopped me without any effort on his part.

"Don't move. I'm trying to check something."

His voice loudly echoed inside of my ears.

As soon as his words vanished, I experienced an electric shock throughout my body. My body began to tense up in response to what he did, and my eyes rolled to the back of my head.

I wanted to scream, but it was all futile effort on my end as my mouth was sealed shut. No matter how much I struggled, I couldn't say anything.

"Mhh! Mhhhhh!"

The only thing that came out of my mouth were low muffled shouts.

"Ah, it makes sense now."

Taking his hand away from my head, Jezebeth once again turned away from me.

He had a satisfied look on his face.

"It's just like I predicted. You were the ones that resulted in Magnus's death, and it doesn't look like an accident either. As expected of you…"

Turning his body around, our eyes met. This time, his smile faded a little.

be his fake

said these words, but I didn't say

began to

"Oh?"

at the

You can say that you

his head and slowly lifted his head. His face slowly turned

and let the real you take

spoke in a gentle manner, every word he spoke thundered in my

experienced a sense of helplessness as a result. Even though it pained me to be reminded that I was a fraud, I was gradually accepting this fact. The fact that

with a

"I'm good."

"You're good?"

he looked at me with a strange look on his

"Ha."

his face with his hand, he let

for long, as his complexion crumbled and his voice

you

eyes flashed with a scarlet color that totally enveloped the room as he snapped his head to gaze at me, and a dreadful

"Khurk!"

instantly dropped on both knees to

I slowly raised my head to look at

Tap. Tap. Tap.

throughout the room

at that moment that the pressure

"Khuak!"

the pressure disappeared, my body reflexively

the ground, I began to heavily gasp for air

"…My bad."

Jezebeth's voice echo

almost forgot about how pathetically weak you are at the moment. For

on the ground, Jezebeth placed both of his hands on

lots of things I want to say, and even though you might not be him, he should still be able to hear every single

my head

"How should we start?"

and pondering for a bit, Jezebeth

hard time remembering certain things. Don't mind me if

head, Jezebeth looked

doesn't seem like you have much time till he takes over. I'll say a couple of years. Mhh,

one hand while extending the other toward me until his palm was directly in

that moment, I caught a whiff of death lingering in

I do? Should I just kill you before he takes over? There have been several instances when he's brought

smooth speech echoed in my thoughts like many whispers, resembling

you right now, a lot of my problems would go

word he spoke, the stronger the hissing sound in my head became, sending me into this weird phase that made it

I've

was only after he removed the palm of his hand away from me that the hissing sound stopped and he appeared in my vision

did he

before me. Although his looks were similar to that of a human, and the way

complete enigma in

made him especially scary

you must be

thoughts, I was jolted out

on his face, he slowly

to walk around me in circles. The sound of his soft footsteps echoed through

weakening. No, the

swallowed a mouthful of

my body started to tremble as a

have the power of the Akashic laws, but with every regression, or time loop,

Be it me, you...or the records, meddling with time doesn't come cheaply. Whatever the case, unlike me and you, the records don't use that

footsteps, Jezebeth turned his head to look at

again? What if it happens so many times that the records slowly start to lose their powers like a fighter running out of stamina, and what if they get so desperate that they start to

my head, I could feel my heart beating loudly as he

His words…

to experience a sudden feeling of dread as

aware of the previous regressions within my mind with each new regression that happened. The records could no longer expend any

white glow enveloped Jezebeth's hand

"This power…it's so addicting."

in a low whisper, his words reverberated so powerfully inside the room that it felt as

the glow on Jezebeth's hand

your looks, you've already guessed it. This is the last loop. Once 'he' dies, the loop will no

intense with each word he said, and my face

back to why I

of my head, and my

my best to

to hear what he wanted to say. I wanted to know why he wasn't killing me. I wanted to

I don't

blanked, and my eyes blinked several times, unable to comprehend his

face as his two glaring red eyes stared at me. No, he was staring at the other

suffering you've experienced to end, right? Then carry it out.

Jezebeth halted himself mid-sentence.

hand over his mouth,

look like you can kill yourself

take long for his brows to relax.

his

be even more

looking at me, not the other

to

while he looked straight into my eyes. Before I could even respond he

of you wants to die,