The whole series of events unfolding around him had creeped him out.
First, he found himself in a strange yet familiar world—a place filled with things that shouldn't exist, or at least shouldn't be possible. A literal space portal, for instance.
But the weirdest part of it all was that he wasn't panicking or crying for his mom. Instead, he felt warm and comfortable. Moreover, his thought process had improved; he understood things more clearly now, processed them faster.
It was almost as if he had aged several years in a matter of moments. The strange knowledge, phrases, and anagrams flooding his mind only confirmed that feeling.
Now, faced with a casually dressed man with no face, John was frozen in fear. Even more unsettling was that the man somehow knew his name. Still, John tried to put on a brave front, attempting to appear calm.
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Seeing the terrified little boy trying to look brave, the faceless man let out a chuckle—from who knows where.
"Haha, don't worry. I mean no harm."
"And how do I know that?" the boy asked, staring at where the man's eyes should have been.
"You don't. But you don't really have a choice, do you? Well, let's begin with introductions. I'm you—or at least a part of you from a past life."
"What do you mean by that?" John asked, furrowing his brow.
"Well, not a Ravenclaw, are you?" the man let out a dry chuckle. "Never mind. Long story short, I'm a spirit that didn't pass on to the afterlife and somehow ended up merging with you. I don't fully understand it myself. Ever since I regained consciousness, I've been here—inside your body—just watching your life unfold. I had no control, just a front-row seat."
Before John could make sense of what "a claw of a crow" had to do with any of this, the faceless man dropped a bombshell.
John was shell-shocked, struggling to understand what this all meant and where it might lead. He tried to speak, to question the man, but only bubbles emerged from his mouth instead of words.
"No questions. Just listen. We don't have much time, and I have a lot to say. Nod if you understand."
Seeing the boy nod, the man continued, "Let's start with my backstory—the one that would make any shonen villain proud."
He snapped his fingers, and the surroundings shifted.
"When you're trapped in your mind for this long, you learn a thing or two," the man said.
A new scene appeared: a small boy being embraced by both parents, all of them laughing. Their faces were blurry.
"I was a shy and introverted kid, but that was never really a problem. I was surrounded by my parents and a few good friends."
The scene changed, showing the same boy now slightly older hanging out with friends, gaming with his father, helping his mother in the kitchen.
"My school life was pretty good. I scored above average, was never bullied, and even managed to get a girlfriend in my final year of high school. But, like all good things, it came to an end."
The image shifted again warmth of the scene vanishing in an instant—a truck crashing into a car.
"The accident took my parents. I was in the back seat, so I survived, but I lost sensation in both legs. Paralyzed from the waist down… just like that everything changed."
"Truck-kun wasn't kind to me. He took my parents and left me broken—physically and mentally."
Now the boy was shown in a wheelchair, crying in front of two graves. Then signing papers while people removed items from his house. Then again—overweight, long-haired, with deep dark circles, staring at a glowing computer screen.
"The insurance covered my medical bills, but we had to sell the house due to unpaid mortgages. I moved into a suburban apartment and shut myself off from the world, escaping into anything—alcohol, anime, you name it."
"It's a miracle I even survived that phase. Maybe all the novels and shonen manga I read finally rubbed off on me," the man let out a soft dry chuckle.
"I hit rock bottom. There was nowhere to go but up. I started going outside again, working online part-time, even going to the gym and applying to universities."
The scene shifted again the boy now in a park, typing in a computer, lifting weights in a small gym, smiling again— just a little.
"But then came my second encounter with Truck-kun. I was crossing the road; Just a few months earlier, I wouldn't have cared. But by then, I wanted to live. So I fought… and somehow, I survived—at least long enough for something to awaken in you and now forcing me. And that led to all this."
After the info dump, John's eyes were a little red. Maybe it was too much for a kid, even with how much he had 'grown' in this strange place.
"You really had it rough, mister. So… what happens to you now?" asked the boy, noting how the space around them had long since crumbled. Now they stood in front of the man's old apartment, glowing particles of light drifting from his faceless form.
"My time's up, and it can't be stopped. The magic or whatever that awakened in you ensured that. But don't worry—I've had a long time to come to terms with it. Maybe now I can finally see my parents again—if they're still out there. I'm leaving everything I learned be it success or my failure for you, without the emotional baggage of course.Consider it a gift and if I am right it is going to be usefull." the man said.
"Aren't you scared, mister?" asked little John, worry in his voice.
Seeing the concern in the boy's eyes, the man laughed softly.
"Don't worry about me, kid. As that Gandalf wannabe says, 'For those brave of heart, death is but another great adventure.'"
The man had begun to fade, vanishing little by little.
"At least tell me your name!" John called out quickly.
"My name is Adam Robinson," the man said calmly.
"It was nice knowing you, Adam."
"It was nice to know you too.I will be watching you so a live a fullfilling and interestinglife."