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

mouth stop once he said these

I began to

"Oh?"

brow raised at the

You can say that you bear striking resemblances

head and slowly lifted his head.

your purpose. How about you disappear and let the real you take over? I have no interest

a gentle manner, every word he spoke thundered in

pained me to be reminded that I was a fraud, I

with a slow

"I'm good."

"You're good?"

while he looked at me with a strange look on

"Ha."

let out one single burst of dry

laugh didn't last for long, as his

actually think you

color that totally enveloped the room as he snapped his head to gaze at me, and a dreadful pressure descended

"Khurk!"

instantly dropped on both knees

I slowly raised my head to look

Tap. Tap. Tap.

rhythmical footsteps echoed throughout the room before they

right at that moment that the

"Khuak!"

body reflexively gagged and a wave of vertigo hit

on the ground, I began to heavily gasp for air while a single

"…My bad."

I heard Jezebeth's voice echo beside my

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

placed both of his hands on the ends of his

talk? There are lots of things I want to say, and even though you

finger, my head snapped

"How should we start?"

for a bit, Jezebeth tapped his head and

still aren't intact you see, so I'm having a hard time remembering certain things.

head, Jezebeth

seem like you have much time till he takes over. I'll say a couple of years. Mhh, that sounds

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

I caught a whiff of death

Should I just kill you before he takes over? There have been several

my thoughts like many whispers, resembling the hissing sound that

you right now, a lot of my

the hissing sound in my head became, sending me into this weird phase that made it hard for me to keep my

I think I've got a better

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

did he

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

a complete

made him especially scary

face, you must be

my thoughts, I was jolted out of

same thin smile on his face, he slowly stood

in circles. The sound of his soft footsteps

No, the Akashic

words, I swallowed

started to

power of the Akashic laws, but with every

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

footsteps, Jezebeth turned his head

happens over and over 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

I could feel my heart beating loudly

His words…

sudden feeling of dread

mind with each new regression that happened. The records could no longer expend any energy

a white glow enveloped Jezebeth's hand and his

"This power…it's so addicting."

though he spoke in a low whisper, his words reverberated so powerfully

me, the glow

it. This is the last loop. Once

word he

why I kept you

hissed loudly inside of my head, and

best to keep myself from passing

he wasn't killing me.

because I don't need to kill

blinked several times, unable

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

want to stop the loops. You want the suffering you've experienced to end, right? Then carry it out. Kill yourself right now. Put an end to

Jezebeth halted himself mid-sentence.

over his mouth, he

doesn't look like you can kill yourself just yet. Not unless

for his brows to relax. The

his smile became even

might be

looking at me,

want to live

asked while he looked straight into my eyes. Before I

part of you wants to