The glow of Lucas Reed's phone lit up his dark bedroom.
It was past midnight, yet sleep felt far away.
Lucas lay sprawled across his bed, one arm hanging lazily over the edge as he scrolled through the last few chapters of a novel he had been obsessively reading for the past three days.
The title sat boldly at the top of the screen.
Empire of Ashes.
A modern urban drama about a billionaire family empire, ruthless corporate wars, and a genius protagonist who rose from nothing to dominate the business world.
The protagonist's name was Adrian Carter.
An adopted son who entered the powerful Carter family as a teenager and eventually took control of the entire Carter Group through sheer intelligence and patience.
Lucas had to admit—it was a satisfying story.
Except for one thing.
"The villain is so stupid," Lucas muttered.
He turned onto his side and kept reading.
The villain in the story was the Carter family's biological heir.
Born rich.
Raised in luxury.
Destined to inherit billions.
Yet he spent the entire novel doing nothing but tormenting Adrian Carter.
Bullying him.
Sabotaging him.
Humiliating him at every opportunity.
His name?
Lucas Carter.
Lucas snorted at the coincidence.
"Same name as me and still that dumb."
In the chapter Lucas was reading, the villain had just publicly mocked Adrian during a family gathering, trying to prove he was superior.
But Adrian calmly turned the situation around and embarrassed him in front of the entire board of directors.
Lucas closed his eyes for a moment and sighed.
"Seriously… if you hate someone smarter than you, just stay away from them."
Why provoke a genius?
Why push someone who would obviously grow stronger later?
It was like watching someone dig their own grave.
Lucas stretched his arms above his head.
Unlike the villain in the novel, his own life was painfully ordinary.
He was a university student.
No billionaire parents.
No giant corporations.
Just classes, assignments, and the occasional late-night novel binge.
Sometimes he imagined what life would be like if he were born rich.
A mansion.
Private cars.
Unlimited money.
But if he ever had that kind of life, he definitely wouldn't spend it acting like the idiot villain in this novel.
Lucas glanced back at the screen.
The story was nearing a particularly famous scene among readers.
A scene where the villain heir cornered Adrian in the mansion's garden and tried to humiliate him in front of other family members.
Lucas remembered reading comments about it earlier.
Everyone hated the villain in that chapter.
He scrolled down lazily.
"Let's see how embarrassing this gets."
His eyes moved across the text.
Lucas Carter grabbed Adrian by the collar.
"Know your place," the villain sneered.
Lucas rolled his eyes.
"Cringe."
He kept reading.
The surrounding servants watched nervously as the young heir shoved Adrian against the stone railing.
Adrian's expression remained calm.
"Are you finished?" he asked quietly.
Lucas chuckled.
"This guy really doesn't know he's digging his own grave."
He tossed his phone onto the pillow beside him and rubbed his eyes.
It was already 2:30 a.m.
"Alright… last chapter," he murmured.
But exhaustion finally caught up to him.
His eyelids grew heavier.
The words on the screen blurred together.
The sound of the fan hummed softly in the background.
Lucas didn't even realize when he drifted into sleep.
---
Pain.
The first thing Lucas felt was pain.
A sharp pounding in his head.
Then noise.
Voices.
"…Young master, please stop…"
"…Someone call Master Carter…"
"…He'll get angry…"
Lucas frowned.
What were those voices?
He slowly opened his eyes.
Bright sunlight stabbed into his vision.
The world spun slightly.
For a moment, Lucas thought he was still dreaming.
He was standing outside.
The ground beneath his feet was covered with perfectly trimmed grass.
Tall hedges surrounded a massive garden.
Elegant fountains sparkled in the distance.
Lucas blinked.
"…What?"
He looked around in confusion.
A large mansion towered nearby.
Servants stood a few steps away, watching nervously.
And in front of him—
Someone was on the ground.
Lucas froze.
A young man knelt on the stone pathway.
His white shirt was wrinkled from being grabbed.
Dark hair fell over his calm but cold eyes.
Lucas felt his hand tighten.
Then he realized something horrifying.
His hand was gripping the other boy's collar.
The position.
The setting.
The garden.
The dialogue.
Lucas's brain suddenly went blank.
Because this scene looked extremely familiar.
Too familiar.
"…Wait."
He slowly looked down at his own hand gripping the boy's shirt.
Then at the boy kneeling in front of him.
Then at the frightened servants watching nearby.
Cold dread crawled down his spine.
This wasn't just familiar.
This was exactly the scene from the novel.
The bullying scene.
The one he had read just before falling asleep.
Lucas's heart started racing.
"No… no way…"
The boy in front of him finally spoke.
His voice was calm but distant.
"Are you done?"
Lucas's stomach dropped.
Those words.
That line.
He remembered it perfectly.
Adrian Carter.
The protagonist of Empire of Ashes.
Lucas immediately released his grip and stumbled back.
The sudden movement shocked the servants.
The boy on the ground slowly stood up, brushing dust off his sleeves.
He looked at Lucas with unreadable eyes.
Lucas swallowed hard.
His mind screamed.
This is bad.
This is really bad.
Because if this scene was real—
If this world really was the novel—
Then that meant one thing.
Lucas looked down at his hands.
They were different.
Paler.
Longer fingers.
Expensive clothes.
A designer watch wrapped around his wrist.
His breathing became uneven.
"No…"
His gaze slowly lifted to the mansion behind them.
Massive pillars.
Luxurious architecture.
A place he had only seen described in text before.
The Carter family mansion.
Lucas felt the last piece of the puzzle fall into place.
"I… transmigrated?"
The word slipped out quietly.
The servants exchanged confused glances.
But Lucas barely noticed them.
Because a far worse realization was crashing down on him.
If Adrian Carter was here…
If the Carter mansion was real…
Then there was only one identity he could possibly have.
Lucas Carter.
The villain heir.
The arrogant rich kid who spent half the novel bullying Adrian.
The same idiot destined to lose everything.
Lucas almost laughed.
Except nothing about this situation was funny.
He had complained about the villain's stupidity just a few hours ago.
And now—
Now he had become him.
"This is insane," Lucas whispered.
Across from him, Adrian Carter studied him silently.
His sharp eyes seemed to observe everything.
Lucas suddenly remembered something important.
In the original story…
This bullying scene happened early in the timeline.
Long before Adrian began destroying the Carter family.
Meaning the story had just started.
Lucas's pulse quickened.
That meant the future hadn't happened yet.
The villain hadn't completely ruined everything.
There was still time.
Time to change things.
Time to avoid the terrible ending.
Lucas quickly stepped back another pace.
The servants looked confused.
Adrian raised an eyebrow slightly.
Lucas forced a casual expression.
"Whatever."
The word came out awkwardly.
He turned away.
"I'm bored."
The servants blinked.
Even Adrian seemed momentarily surprised.
Because in the original story, the villain would have continued humiliating him.
But Lucas had no intention of following the plot.
Not when the ending was so terrible.
Behind him, Adrian's voice sounded again.
Calm.
Quiet.
"Is that all?"
Lucas paused.
For a moment, he almost looked back.
But something in Adrian's tone made him hesitate.
Cold.
Observant.
Dangerous.
Lucas remembered exactly what kind of person Adrian would become.
A genius strategist.
A future CEO.
The man who would eventually destroy Lucas Carter completely.
Lucas forced himself to keep walking.
"Yeah," he said casually.
"That's all."
Inside, however, his thoughts were racing.
Step one.
Stop bullying Adrian.
Step two.
Stay as far away from him as possible.
Step three.
Survive.
Lucas shoved his hands into his pockets and walked toward the mansion.
The servants slowly dispersed.
Behind him, Adrian remained standing in the garden.
His dark eyes followed Lucas's retreating figure.
Something about the scene felt… strange.
Different from what he expected.
Adrian adjusted his wrinkled collar.
Then quietly murmured to himself.
"…What are you planning, Lucas Carter?"
But Lucas didn't hear him.
Because right now, the only thought in his mind was far simpler.
I need to stay away from the protagonist.
Unfortunately for him…
Fate clearly had other plans.
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