"Am I dead...?"
"Was it all a dream...?"
"Where… where am I?"
Khh...
Haa... Haa...
Renzo inhaled shakily as his eyes fluttered open to a horrifying scene. He was on his knees, surrounded by thick smoke. The air was heavy. Silent. His body felt like it was being stabbed by shards of glass.
It was so vivid he was sure he'd find pieces lodged in his skin, but when he looked down...nothing. He looked completely fine. Healthy, even.
"What… what's going on? Where am I? Wasn't I just... burnt alive?" Renzo asked aloud, voice cracking. He tried to move, but even the slightest shift sent waves of pain through his limbs.
Pa... Pa... Pa...
Slow, deliberate footsteps echoed from the smoke.
Renzo froze.
He didn't know why, but something deep in his body instinctively recoiled. He lowered his head despite the agony. Whatever was approaching… wasn't human. It wasn't natural. It was like a god walking toward an insect.
He wanted to scream, to ask something ,anything but his voice was trapped. His body wouldn't respond. It was as if the very presence of the being approaching had overridden his will.
The footsteps grew louder… closer… heavier.
And the closer it came, the more his body trembled. His spine bent further, displaying submission he never intended.
Then… silence.
The presence had arrived. Standing directly before him.
Renzo's eyes stayed glued to the ground. He couldn't lift his head, but he felt it, something terrible was staring at him.
"You're right... you were burned to death," a calm voice said above him. Deep. Cold. Final.
The being crouched. Its face now close to Renzo's own.
"Then... why am I here? Am I dead?" Renzo tried to ask, but his lips wouldn't move. His voice still refused him.
The being tilted its head, amused.
"I suppose I should allow him to speak," it said, more to itself than to Renzo.
Renzo's eyes widened. I couldn't speak... because I wasn't allowed to?
"Speak."
Suddenly, Renzo gasped as control returned to his body.
"W...Who are you? And where the hell am I?" he stammered.
"Who am I?" the being repeated. "I am you. We are one. Look up."
Renzo hesitated.
This had to be a joke. A hallucination. Maybe ghosts could hallucinate? He wasn't sure.
Still, he looked up.
And froze.
"You… You really are me."
The being before him looked identical to Renzo. Except for one thing, its eyes.
Crimson. And within them… a circular void. A black emptiness that seemed to devour light itself.
It was then Renzo noticed something else. He wasn't breathing. Couldn't taste or smell. But he felt alive.
Yet this creature claimed he was dead, burned alive.
And why did it look like him?
"Where are we?" he asked.
"This is my domain," the being said calmly. "Now our domain. The final fragment of your soul that refused to die. You're still here because your hatred... your rage... is too strong. Surely you've heard the tales? What happens to those consumed by extreme emotion?"
Renzo's eyes widened.
His father.
His forbidden Danchi awakened when he was depressed beyond hope…
Now, Renzo was filled with hate. Rage. A thirst for revenge that swallowed his mind whole.
"Exactly," the being said with a smirk. "You've awakened a forbidden Danchi."
"You… what are you saying...?"
"I'm saying you're no longer just human. You are the end. You are the embodiment of annihilation. The one who holds the reins of death in this world. Your Danchi is Destruction born from hatred and sealed in bloodlust."
Renzo trembled.
"I... I awakened a forbidden Danchi...?"
The pain exploded in his body like molten metal pouring through his veins.
"AAAAH...!"
Huff... Huff... Huff... Huff...
Renzo shot upright, gasping for breath.
His eyes darted around wildly. He was lying on a bed in a well-furnished room. Outside, he could hear footsteps, distant voices, people rushing, orders being shouted. The world was moving.
He was… alive?
His nose twitched. The aroma of hot food hit him like a wave. He turned to the side and saw a small table beside his bed with a steaming bowl of rice.
"Hungry…" he muttered, blinking.
He didn't care where he was. Didn't care how he got here. He just wanted food.
He reached for the bowl, it was hot, but felt ice cold in his hands. He didn't question it.
He devoured the rice quickly, shoving spoonfuls into his mouth until the bowl was empty.
"Ah… I'm good."
Clarity returned to his head. He could think.
"So I'm alive…" he whispered, staring at the simple room. A bed, a table, two windows, and a door. Nothing else.
Simple. Like his room back in the village.
He noticed the steam still rising from the bowl. It was hot, and yet… he felt none of it. It was like his body wasn't registering temperature anymore.
Then, like a needle to the brain, it returned.
The memory of that being… of himself. The conversation. The Danchi.
"Destruction?" Renzo whispered.
"You're awake."
A voice cut through his thoughts.
Renzo turned.
A boy, roughly his age, stood in the doorway with arms crossed.
"Good. Follow me," the boy said plainly.
No explanations. No introductions. No time.
Renzo blinked.
"…If I want answers, I guess I have to follow him."
He stood, placed the bowl back on the table, and followed.
But deep down, one question still echoed in his mind:
Am I alive… or is this just hell with better furniture?
"Your name?" the male asked as he and Renzo stepped outside.
They were in what looked like a small base. Around them, teenagers, roughly Renzo's age were being trained by middle-aged men and women. Instructors, no doubt. But what caught Renzo's attention wasn't the training, it was the inhuman strength they displayed while training.
Turning into blurs with speed.
Lifting massive boulders like paper.
Jumping five meters into the air as if gravity meant nothing.
"Renzo," he replied absentmindedly, his gaze glued to the astonishing displays of power around him.
Was this still his world?
"Renzo," the male repeated, catching his attention. "You're interested in what they're doing? Or is it their power that fascinates you?"
He sat on a nearby bench and gestured.
"Sit."
Renzo nodded and took a seat beside him.
"Both," he answered honestly.
"Well, then you're in luck," the boy said. "Lady Lucy saved you during her mission to escort a wealthy merchant's daughter. That's when she discovered you had awakened a Danchi."
Renzo's heart skipped a beat.
Awakened…?
He remembered what the being, himself...told him:
Destruction.
A forbidden Danchi.
"Relax," the boy added, noticing the tension. "Your Danchi is a pure one. A common one, actually. You awakened the Fire Danchi."
Renzo blinked.
Fire...?
But that didn't make sense.
"My name is Jake. Nice to meet you," the boy continued, extending a hand. "I'm a Wind Danchi user."
Renzo hesitated.
Fire Danchi? But... I'm sure I awakened Destruction...
He didn't know why, but he believed that being. Deep down, he knew something wasn't right.
Still, he shook Jake's hand.
"Nice to meet you."
Jake gave a short nod. "I've been assigned to teach you the basics every Danchi user needs to know."
He paused… and then smiled.
A strange smile.
Renzo couldn't explain it, but something about that smile felt… off.
And then Jake spoke again.
"Although you awakened a pure Danchi… if you use it...., you'll die."
Renzo's eyes widened.
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