Life didn't get easier, even in another world

322 How is that possible?

“Reynold?”

Kairen tilted his head. That name was a familiar name, but he couldn’t remember where he had heard it before. He thought about the names of people he knew but couldn’t find out who this man was.

“Who?”

He couldn’t help but ask the man again. The redhead smiled at him before turning to walk towards the desk once again.

“That sound familiar, right?”

Kairen nodded his head despite knowing that the man wouldn’t see it.

“Yeah...”

“Think a little bit more~”

He said teasingly.

.....

“I didn’t know you were so bad with history!”

History?

‘What does it have to do with-‘

Kairen’s jaw dropped as soon as he remembered a certain person.

“E-Emperor Reynold?”

He stuttered that word as he stared at the man’s long red hair that was fluttering as he moved. In his response, the man just hummed and nodded his head.

“What the-”

Kairen moved back in his bed, his back almost hitting the wall.

“How is that even possible?”

The man who introduced himself as Reynold picked up a plate and walked back to Kairen once again, making the boy flinch on his spot.

“You are lying!”

Despite being scared, he still spat out those words with anger.

“Why would I lie about such a thing?”

“I-I don’t know!”

He pulled up his blanket as soon as he noticed that the man wanted to seat on the bed with the plate of food and moved back a little bit more, creating as much distance as he could from the man.

“You are scared of the one who saved your life?”

“I’m scared of a freaking stranger who keeps on saying strange stuff!”

“Pfft!”

The man let out a gentle chuckle, placed the plate of food in front of Kairen, then stood up and moved away from the bed.

“All I said was the truth. You are free to believe me or not!”

He slowly moved away from Kairen, like someone who would throw out some meat at a scared kitten and then retreat, while still smiling at him.

“You have to take those pills and eat food if you want to recover. I’m sure you don’t want to keep experiencing that pain.”

“....”

Kairen glanced sideways at the pills on the small desk beside him, then at the man. Before the redhead could open his mouth again, Kairen threw another question at him.

“How do you know me?”

He was still on guard and couldn’t completely believe the man’s words, but he still asked what was on his mind.

“How can the great emperor of the Hainston Empire know someone like me?”

Kairen closed his mouth, took a deep breath, and asked something else.

“How can that emperor be still alive?”

He picked up the pills on the table as well as the glass of water. As the man had said, he didn’t really like to feel the pain in his body the whole day. Even if the man was lying to him and there was some strange stuff inside the pill, Kairen just decided to trust the man and take them.

Seeing him do that, the corners of Reynold’s lips curled up. He let out a small chuckle and then sat down on the ground.

“Are you really surprised about the fact that I’m still alive?”

He placed his hands on his knees and tidied his clothes.

“Are you, who was suddenly moved from one world to another one really surprised about it? Aren’t you the one who had aged back? Haven’t you seen how young your brother is?”

“How do you know about those things?”

Hearing those words from the man’s mouth made Kairen so shocked that he almost dropped the glass of water in his hand. Ignoring his question, the man continued to talk.

“Are you really surprised that I’m alive after seeing Samuel with your two eyes?”

“....”

Samuel, the holy saint... It was indeed a strange thing that he was still alive.

“Has there ever been proof of my death in history? Has anyone ever said that emperor Reynold has passed away?”

“....”

Kairen stared at the man in silence. He was right. There were no records of this man’s death in the history books. There wasn’t a tomb or a grave that belonged to him like most other kings... And even Alan didn’t say anything about his death. Rather... He said some other things...

-Emperor Reynold was a great man. He was the one who saved thousands of people and created the empire. However, he was a scary man. Someone whom people could never understand.

He created an empire and taught people how to survive in the harsh world, but then he suddenly vanished, leaving everyone without their trusted ruler. The only things he left behind were these seven items. It was said that he had infused his own power inside them saying that their power would help the right people in leading the fate of this land.

That was what Alan had once said about the person called emperor Reynold. A great, yet scary man.

Someone who had left behind those ancient artifacts before vanishing forever.

“Ancient artifacts...”

Kairen mumbled under his lips.

“You are the one who created them?”

“You are now believing that I’m that emperor?”

“I’m simply not denying that idea.”

Kairen glared at the man who might and might not be the first emperor of his country.

“Are you the one who created those artifacts?”

“....”

The man looked at Kairen’s face, smiled, then lowered his head. He looked down at his hand while still wearing that nostalgic smile on his face and answered in a low voice.

“I might be the one who created them... And I might not.”

He glanced back at Kairen while still smiling, his face that of someone who was looking at a very precious person.

“But I am, for sure, then one who caused the creation of those things.”

“....”

Kairen frowned his brows.

“Can’t you answer properly?”

Why was he talking like a fucking mysterious character in horror movies? Just spit out the answer, god damn it!

“To answer them properly... You need to first know some other information.”

“...What information?”

“Some that I don’t want you to know about.”

“....”

Kairen frowned even more.

“What the hell!”

BANG

He banged the half-empty glass of water on the table beside the bed.

“You keep saying strange stuff in strange ways while keeping me in a strange place where I don’t know what the hell is going on! Do you really think that this is fine? I can’t accept this!”

What could he even do if he didn’t accept the situation?

.....

“At least tell me about your power!”

The man’s eyebrows raised a little bit due to the sudden change in the subject.

“My power?”

“Your power looks so much similar to mine. I have to know more about it!”

“....”

The man once again closed his mouth. He looked at his fingers, tilted his head, and nibbled his lips as if contemplating his choices.

“Yeah. Your power is indeed similar to mine.”

And then he finally gave an answer.

“Because you’ve got that power from me.”

“....”

Kairen’s hand froze in the air. He blinked his eyes as he opened and closed his mouth several times.

“Yes?”

He had received an answer he never expected to hear.

“I’ve gotten it from you?”

From a fucking old man whom he had never seen in his life?

“When? How is that even possible?”

The man stared at his face with his nostalgic smile.

“You know... No one really talks like this to me.”

He slowly shook his head.

“No one dares to do so. Throughout my life, no one had ever been so rude to me. They had all either talked to me with respect or fear.”

Kairen, wondering what the man was talking about all of a sudden, slowly lowered his hand and listened to his words.

“There were no people whom I talked to like this either. Answering a question that some random person had asked me so easily? Chattering like this, talking bullshit, or acting so defenselessly around them? Hah! Never!”

He chuckled and shook his head.

“But yeah, there were exceptions. Throughout my life, there were a few people whom I never saw like the other fools around me.”

“....”

Kairen pulled up his blanket even more and listened to the man’s sudden flashbacks carefully.

“One was a trusted friend. A helper, a follower, someone whom I could put all my trust on.”

He shrugged.

“Well, that was for the past.”

“....”

Kairen picked up a piece of meat from the plate in front of him and placed it into his mouth without taking his eyes off of the man.

“And another one was...”

He stopped at his words and suddenly raised his head to look at Kairen, making to boy stop chewing the food out of shock and freeze on his spot, flinching slightly as well.

“Hey, do you know anything about reincarnating?”