Chương 356: Memory of Agony

Vale saw only darkness. There was no light. No sound. No sensation beyond the endless void stretching in every direction. His consciousness drifted aimlessly through the emptiness, untethered from reality. Although his body had fallen unconscious, something deep within him remained awake. He could think, yet no matter how hard he tried, he could not open his eyes. A sharp, unbearable pain spread through both sockets, as though blades had been driven cleanly through them.

Vale clenched his fists and hissed through gritted teeth as every instinct screamed at him to reach for the source of the agony.

'If I'm unconscious... why can I still move?' Slowly, he lifted his right arm. His thoughts halted. His arm felt... normal, made of warm flesh. Not the usual cold metal. His breathing hitched as his fingers traced across his face. They met skin instead of polished steel before carefully brushing over the wounds where his eyes should have been. His mind froze.

'Wait...'

'Is this... a memory?' A chill spread through him as the realization settled into place. If that was true, then this was the moment before he lost everything. The moment before he lost his arm. The moment his old life ended. Vale focused entirely on the agony in his ruined eyes, forcing them open through sheer determination. Pain exploded through his skull, making every muscle tense, yet no matter how hard he tried there was nothing. Only darkness. His eyes were gone. Panic surged through him.

Both hands stretched desperately into the endless black, searching for anything that might tell him where he was.

"Oh my..." A voice echoed through the void. It was calm. Almost amused.

"So lively... even after losing both your eyes." The words sent a violent shiver racing down Vale's spine. He wanted to scream, to demand answers, but he couldn't. This wasn't truly happening anymore. He wasn't controlling his own body. He was merely witnessing something that had already come to pass.

"W-Why...?" his younger self asked, his voice trembling violently.

"Why are you doing this?"

"Why?" The stranger repeated the word as though it genuinely amused him. A low, cruel chuckle echoed through the darkness before agony suddenly erupted through Vale's right arm. A blade sliced cleanly through flesh and bone, and his memory screamed, a raw, primal scream filled with unbearable pain, as his arm was severed from his body.

"Oh... it's nothing personal, really..." The stranger paused.

"... Actually... I take that back. It is very personal." A hand grabbed Vale's chin, forcing his head upward.

"I simply enjoy watching you suffer. I enjoy watching you break... cripple... and eventually... die." Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. The stranger's voice remained almost gentle, making the words all the more horrifying. Vale jerked his head free and desperately tried crawling backward, dragging himself across the ground with his remaining arm. He never made it far.

A heavy boot slammed into his jaw, sending him tumbling several meters before his broken body crashed violently against stone.

'What is happening...?'

'Why...?'

'Why would someone hate me this much?' Slow footsteps echoed through the darkness as the stranger approached once more.

"Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure everyone forgets you after you're gone.''''You've already fulfilled your purpose. There is no place left for you in this world... now that I'm here." Vale's thoughts froze. His younger self suddenly shouted, "W-What purpose?! What are you talking about?!" Before another word could leave his mouth, countless slashes carved across his body. Pain exploded everywhere at once. Blood poured from dozens of fresh wounds while his screams echoed endlessly through the void.

"Your purpose?" The stranger laughed quietly.

"And why would I tell that to a corpse?" His tone carried absolute certainty.

"You are going to die."

"So tell me... why should I answer a dead man's questions?" Vale's younger self struggled to breathe. Blood pooled beneath him as his body slowly gave out. Yet somehow, despite everything, he laughed. It was weak, broken and defiant"Won't you even grant a dying man his last request?" A bloody grin spread across his lips.

"You're nothing more than a pathetic coward."

"They'll never accept you." Silence lingered for several long moments before the stranger answered.

"Oh?"

"They don't have to." His voice carried almost no emotion.

"But if they refuse... They'll die... just like you." Vale's consciousness shook violently.

'Friends...?'

'He killed my friends...?'

"I must admit..." The stranger sounded almost disappointed.

"You exceeded my expectations."

"But your story ends here." Something pierced his chest. A sword. It slid directly through his heart. His younger self gasped one final time.

"Goodbye." The stranger's voice carried no hatred, no excitement, and no satisfaction. Only complete indifference. Then Vale felt himself lifted from the ground. His broken body was thrown through some kind of portal before darkness swallowed everything once again. It was the same darkness. The same endless void. The place where he had first awakened without memories. Except this time... He understood. This was why.

His breathing became shallow as he reached upward with his remaining arm, desperately trying to hold onto something. Anything.

"No..." His fingers trembled. His strength faded. His heart beat once. Then... Stopped. Vale had died. Vale's eyes snapped open. He shot upright so violently that the bed nearly overturned beneath him.

"No!" His scream echoed through the barracks as he stumbled onto unsteady feet and began pacing aimlessly across the room. His breathing came in frantic gasps while his heartbeat thundered in his ears, drowning out every coherent thought.

"I died... I died..."

"No... no, no, no..."

"How am I alive if I died? What happened? Who was he? Why did he kill me?"

"My friends... He said he killed my friends... But why?" His words grew faster and faster until they dissolved into frantic muttering. Every new realization crashed into the last before his mind could process it. Normally he would have forced himself to stop, to breathe, to think, to analyze the situation piece by piece. Not this time. This time... He couldn't. A large hand suddenly wrapped around his wrist. Vale reacted purely on instinct.

His fist shot downward with lethal force, but before it could reach its target another enormous hand intercepted it effortlessly.

"Calm down." Korin's deep voice cut through the chaos that consumed his mind.

"I don't know what happened, but you're clearly under more stress than I've ever seen." He slowly loosened his grip.

"Please."

"Sit down." Vale stared blankly at him. Korin's words sounded distant, muffled beneath the roar filling his own mind, as though he were submerged beneath deep water. Even so, he understood enough. Taking quick, uneven breaths, Vale slowly lowered himself onto the edge of the bed. His entire body trembled uncontrollably. One leg bounced violently while he buried his face in his arms, elbows resting against his knees. His thoughts continued looping without end.

'What happened?'

'What happened?'

'What happened?' The question repeated so many times that it barely resembled words anymore. Korin watched him in silence, obvious concern etched across his face.

"... A nightmare?" Vale slowly lifted his head. His eyes were hollow. Haunted. He looked directly at Korin, and for several long seconds he couldn't bring himself to speak. Finally, his lips parted.

"No." His voice barely rose above a whisper. He swallowed hard, struggling to accept the truth even as he spoke it aloud.

"... A memory."