Theo's eyes fluttered open. The ceiling above him was unfamiliar—white tiles, flickering fluorescent lights, and the antiseptic smell of a hospital. His body felt like lead, disconnected from his mind.
The air tasted sterile—antiseptic mixed with a metallic scent. Blood. His blood. Dried blood caked his face and clothes, but beneath the crimson stains, his skin was smooth and unmarked. Jennifer's mana had done its work; he'd been dead minutes ago.
"Where am I?" The words scraped out of his throat, barely a whisper.
"Who are you asking?"
Theo's head snapped toward the voice. A man sat on a wooden stool beside the bed, leaning back with casual confidence. Recognition hit like cold water.
"Master Richard." The name tumbled from his lips before he could stop it. Theo pushed himself up against the pillows, his hands trembling. "I—"
"Oh, you know me?" Richard's face broke into a genuine smile, warm and disarming. "That's fine, that's fine." He seemed oddly pleased to be recognised.
Suddenly, the smile faded. "But why did you attack Joseph?"
Theo stared down at his blankets, unable to meet the man's eyes. Words stuck in his throat for his crime.
"Don't worry," Richard said, his tone gentler now. "My little brother Joseph has forgiven you. He holds no grudge." He leaned forward, studying Theo with open curiosity. "But what really caught my attention was hearing that you're from the Maripian race."
Theo's breath caught. Before he could respond, the door swung open.
"Hey, hey, why are you scaring the boy?" Jennifer strode into the room, her expression protective as she approached the bed. But her eyes held the same curiosity as Richard's. "Is it true that you're Maripian? People say your race is incredibly rare."
Theo shrank back into his pillows, overwhelmed.
I can read her mind, Theo thought. She's Joseph's elder sister. No hatred directed at me. Just... curiosity. Pure curiosity. She wants to understand.
Relief flooded through him, loosening the tight knot in his chest.
Jennifer's smile sharpened. A clear thought formed in her mind, deliberate and pointed: You don't need to do that. I know how much you can read others' minds.
Theo's eyes widened. "She knows."
Jennifer sat on the edge of the bed. "I know everything about why you attacked Joseph. He's not a lord anymore—just an ordinary boy." Her voice softened. "We know what Joseph did as the Knowledge Lord. We know what he did to your race. Can you forgive him?"
"He's not my enemy now." Theo finally found his voice. "My family is among the last of the Maripian race—the 'reader race' of the Knowledge World. My mother is the Grand Master of the Diaftis Order."
Freya appeared with a damp cloth, gently wiping blood from Theo's face. "Why did you attack Joseph? Are you against the Knowledge Lord?"
"I saw his childhood memories in my dimension." Theo's voice was quiet but steady. "The evilness, the darkness—everything I knew about the Lord—it's gone from him now."
"Thank you." Jennifer exhaled, relief washing over her features.
"But he has so many enemies." Theo looked between them, worry etched into his young face. "My grandfather Riddle Cornelius Galanis was one of the Maripians who revolted against the Knowledge Lord 700 years ago. My entire family hates him; the whole Diaftis Order thirsts for his blood."
"And there's another order—the Devotees of All Lords—trying to reincarnate the three lords using the cursed power of the Dark Lord. They'll come for him, too." He paused. "The person who tried to kill me was from that order."
The colour drained from Jennifer's face. Freya's hand froze mid-motion, the cloth trembling. Jennifer gripped the bed frame so hard her knuckles turned white. They exchanged a single glance—both understanding the storm gathering on the horizon.
Outside the door, Johan stood in the hallway shadows, listening to every word. His jaw tightened with worry. But he knew what he had to do.
Late that night, Joseph's room lay dark and still. Johan eased the door open and slipped inside.
"Oi, Joseph," he called softly. "Are you sleeping?"
He moved deeper into the darkness, lifting the blanket. It was empty.
Panic crept into his chest like cold fingers wrapping around his heart. He dropped to his knees,
"Joseph? Joseph!" His voice rose as panic took hold. He dropped to his knees, checked under the bed, behind the desk, everywhere—
The lights flashed on. Joseph stood by the switch, exhaustion carved into his features.
"Did something happen?"
Johan's heart rate slowly returned to normal. He took a breath, steadying himself. "I need to ask you something."
"About what?"
Johan stood up."Jennifer and I saw your powers. You know what you are."
Joseph's shoulders sagged. "Yes, brother. In my previous life, I killed countless mages. I saved humanity, but I also exterminated entire races. I exist between darkness and light." Sadness pooled in his eyes like deep water.
"Don't worry." Johan stepped forward, his smile gentle. "You're Joseph. My little brother."
"But I've forgotten my previous memories. Everything I know about my past self comes from books. I don't know how much is truth and how much is legend."
"Then what do you want to do now?"
Joseph pulled Johan into a tight embrace. Joseph looked up at him, and something shifted in his expression—determination replaced despair.
"I want to see smiles blossom on every face, the way yours does.
I want to turn the world into our Jardin Paisible,
where peace grows like flowers in open soil.
I want my enemies to lay down their hatred and rise as friends,
and for cruel hearts to learn the language of kindness.
Jardin Paisible—
The peaceful garden of paradise our mother once dreamed into being."
"You're a bird of the garden, just like us," Johan said warmly.
Meanwhile, Theo was approaching his home. The streets were quieter in this part of the city, away from the bustling main roads. Theo walked with purposeful strides toward his house, a modest two-story building squeezed between a closed grocery store and an abandoned lot.
The building's paint was peeling, revealing grey concrete beneath. A single yellow streetlight flickered overhead, casting unstable shadows.
His mother stood in the doorway. She looks so much younger. She was not more than five years older than Theo. It directly means that she was a high-level mage.
"Come." Not a request. A command.
Without a word, Theo entered. They walked to the dining room in silence. Each footstep echoed.
"Sit."
Theo sank into the chair, his whole body trembling. "Mother, I did something wrong—"
"Why did you fail to kill the Knowledge Lord?" The question came out as a hiss, filled with more venom than a serpent's bite.
Before Theo could react, she grabbed his head and slammed it onto the table. The impact was so catastrophic that the solid oak table split in half with a deafening crack.
CRACK-BOOM.
Pain exploded through Theo's skull like a bomb detonating inside his brain. Blood streamed from a gash on his forehead, running into his eyes and pooling on the floor in spreading crimson puddles. He screamed.
She raised his head to strike again, but froze. Her eyes narrowed as she read his thoughts.
"Wait." Her voice dropped to a deadly whisper. "You're not Theo. Who are you?"
The boy grabbed her wrist and snapped his fingers. Mana erupted around him like a tempest. The illusion shattered, revealing Richard. Blood poured down his face from the genuine injury.
"Aaaa! It hurts!" Richard screamed despite his mastery of mana. The wound was real and brutal.
The air ripped apart with sounds like tearing fabric. Portals tore open around the room. Within seconds, a dozen New World Order members poured through, surrounding her with drawn swords. Richard wiped blood from his eyes with the back of his hand, smearing it across his cheek. He looked up at the Grand Master through a red haze. She was frozen in place, surrounded but defiant.
"You thought you could infiltrate my home?" She snarled. "Disguise yourself as my son?"
"We needed proof," Richard gasped, still clutching his head. "Proof of what you've been doing to him."
But the situation shifted. Reinforcements flooded in. Outnumbered and outmanoeuvred, Theo's mother realised the truth—she was outnumbered twenty to one, possibly more. She surrendered.
Order members bound her hands with an enchanted rope. Kaeli stepped through a portal, her eyes sweeping the destroyed room before landing on Richard. She rushed to his side.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Richard leaned heavily against the broken table. "I once thought disguising myself as a child was the safest option. But these days, I realise children face more danger than anyone."
"This woman is definitely going to prison for child abuse." Kaeli's voice hardened. "The neighbours reported she regularly beats Theo. Once she knocked him unconscious."
Richard stared at the floor, thinking of the boy. Theo's life had been a nightmare long before he ever met Joseph. The abuse, the manipulation—it all made sense now. His surroundings had forged him into someone aggressive and broken.
And somehow, he'd still chosen mercy.