"Brooooooooooooo"
A man flung himself onto Kim, locking his arms tightly around his neck, practically sitting in his lap.
"Brooo! I heard you lost your mind, bro! But don't worry—I'll take you to a doctor, brooo!"
The man kept talking, his voice filled with dramatic panic, but for Kim… time froze.
His heart stopped. His breath caught. A sense of dread crept in like frost under his skin. It was happening again—he was waiting. Waiting for this loud, ridiculous man to die in the most miserable way imaginable, right before his eyes.
No... not again.
He inhaled sharply and began to count, desperate to ground himself.
One… two… three…
By the third breath, the man was still clinging to him—very much alive, still sobbing, still shouting.
Kim's eyes finally rose.
In front of him stood people in long, white coats, wearing strange hats like priests or physicians. Behind them were sights even more bizarre—flames burning inside silver boxes, strange machines blinking with colored lights, gadgets he couldn't begin to understand.
Kim scanned the room slowly, as though stepping into a dream.
What is this? Fire controlled inside metal? Devices that speak without runes? Is this… magic?
The man continued to bawl beside him, clinging to his shoulder like a frightened puppy. "Brooo…"
Kim blinked. So… they sealed the curse? Or… is Yura truly gone?
Before he could process anything further, the man's shriek shattered his thoughts again. "Bro! You're bleeding! Are you going to die?!"
Kim scoffed and slapped a hand to his forehead. "Seriously."
One thing led to another, and eventually, the wailing man convinced Kim to meet this so-called "doctor." Kim had refused countless times—until he realized that "doctor" simply meant physician.
That didn't seem too bad… until he stepped outside.
The world hit him like a wave.
Towering structures of steel and glass loomed over him, taller and grander than the king's castle in his world. Roads stretched endlessly in straight black lines. And upon them moved massive, metallic beasts—no horses, no reins—just steel creatures roaring forward under human command.
"What… what is that?" Kim whispered, eyes wide as he watched one speed past. "Have humans… mastered demons and turned them into obedient beasts?!"
The man, who by now introduced himself as Max, pressed a handkerchief gently to the cut on Kim's head. "What are you talking about?"
Kim shook his head. "Nothing."
His mind went blank the moment Max dragged him into one of those monsters—a 'bus,' he called it. Inside, it was even stranger. Humans sat calmly as the creature moved beneath them, controlled not by reins, but a rotating wheel.
They call this peace?
Soon, they reached the "hospital"—a place too clean, too sterile, too unnatural.
Kim refused to enter at first, but Max's whimpers and teary eyes eventually broke through his defenses. He reluctantly stepped inside.
They placed him on a soft bed. His fingers instinctively brushed over the fabric—so smooth, so pristine. Then a hand touched his back.
Without thinking, Kim slapped it away.
It was a woman.
She wore white, her eyes wide in shock. She didn't speak. She didn't react. Just… looked at him, stunned.
"Do not touch me," Kim said sharply, eyes dark as stone.
She nodded silently and slipped out of the room.
Outside, Max sat on a bench, restless. He had golden-blonde hair that shimmered under the fluorescent lights, and ocean-blue eyes filled with concern. With his tall frame and model-like features, nurses whispered and blushed as they walked by. But Max wasn't the only center of gossip.
There was also the stranger—the man with obsidian-black hair, crimson-tinged eyes, and an expression that never changed. His sharp jawline and unreadable gaze left the staff whispering rumors and wide-eyed.
The nurse who had been inside pressed her back to the door, face flushed bright red.
Max rushed over. "What happened? Is my bro okay?!"
The nurse didn't speak at first. When she finally did, it wasn't an answer—it was a quiet, nervous, "I'm sorry."
Inside, Kim sat on the bed, silent. Observing.
So… the curse is sealed. Or removed. People can touch me, and they don't die. That's the first thing.
Second… this world is completely foreign. I must tread carefully. Mimic them. Learn them.
Third… I seem to have people around me. But that's not always a good thing…
After turning the thoughts over and over in his head, Kim exhaled. "Let's take it slowly."
Just as he finished speaking, the door was kicked off its hinges and crashed onto the floor.
"Broooo, you can't leave meeee!" Max burst in, eyes soaked, but froze when he saw Kim calmly sitting on the bed.
"…Ahem. You're alright," Max mumbled, scratching the back of his neck.
But outside, nurses who had been peeking fainted the moment Kim's crimson eyes glanced their way.
Kim sighed. "The curse may not be broken after all. Perhaps… merely sealed."
After a slap or two to keep the more curious nurses and overbearing doctors at bay, Kim was eventually released and brought to a small home—a quiet place Max claimed was his.
The doctors told him he'd lost his memories. Kim didn't argue. In fact, he used it to his advantage—asking dozens of questions to better understand the body he now inhabited.
What shocked him most… was the child.
A girl—no older than five. Silk-black hair that mirrored his own. Wide black eyes full of worry and wonder. Small hands clutched at the fabric of his pants the moment he stepped inside.
Max leaned in with a nervous smile. "That's your daughter."
Daughter?
The word struck Kim like thunder. A title he never dreamed of having. An emotion he didn't understand.
"Dad?" the little girl whispered, looking up at him with fragile hope. But what she found in his gaze was distant—cold, confused.
Was this really her father?
Before she could say anything more, Kim turned and rushed upstairs, slamming the door behind him.
Downstairs, Nina's small fists clenched.
"What… what happened to Dad?" she asked quietly.
Max sighed and patted her head. "Don't worry, sweetheart. He just hit his head. The doctors say he's forgotten a few things."
Her eyes widened. "Does that mean he forgot about… her? And everything else too?!"
Her voice was tinged with strange excitement.
Max lifted her into his arms. "For now, it seems like it. But the doctors also said that if he sees familiar things… he might start remembering again."
Nina's eyes locked with his. They shared a knowing look.
"Then we burn everything familiar," she said, a gleam in her eye.
Max chuckled and pinched her nose. "You're such a little devil."
Nina slapped his hand away, pouting. "Don't treat me like a kid!"
She jumped down, landing hard, nearly giving Max a heart attack.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to jump like that?!"
As she walked into the kitchen, Max followed, eyes darting with hunger.
But just as he was about to open his mouth, Nina cut him off, deadpan.
"Why don't you go to your own home?"
Max looked wounded. "Are you kicking your uncle out?!"
"You're not my uncle. Now leave," she said, holding up a kitchen knife like a threat.
Max fled into the living room with a speed that betrayed years of practice. Nina gave chase.
"Don't even think about touching the sofa!" she shouted.
Max was already clinging to the sofa like it was a holy altar.
"This is my niece's home—it's my home too!"
"You're not my uncle!"
"You broke your poor uncle's heart!"
Their voices echoed through the house—playful, chaotic, alive.
Upstairs, Kim sat behind the closed door, his back pressed to it.
He could hear everything. Every laugh. Every shout. Every lie.
And from the depths of his memories, the past surged forward again.
A woman screamed, "He killed his parents! He's a monster!" as she shielded her child from the trembling boy with tear-filled eyes.
Eyes no one ever bothered to see.