(There is an auxiliary chapter before this one, check it out, it contains some insights )
Ouch!
Mmm!
God, my abdomen, it hurts.
What the...
Hold on, that's not my voice.
The bizarre dream filled with murmurs shattered. Kai Ren's eyes opened very dully and slowly, his head spiraling and his stomach in deep ache, a pain that seemed to stretch to his heart, burning.
It was as though a sharp-toothed rodent was chewing through his intestines, dragging and pulling on it at the same time.
"Ouch!"
He cried again, the pain hurting even more that he didn't even want to give much thought to the fact that it wasn't his voice he was hearing.
"Am I not still yet awake, or am I dreaming inside of a dream, or…"
"Ouch!" The pain in his stomach bit him again, harder. It was something he hadn't felt before. Never.
"God! Don't tell me I'm having menstrual cramps. I'm a boy!"
That last sting of pain he felt was so sharp that he grabbed his stomach, and his focus sharpened a bit. He realized at least where he was.
He was lying on a cold floor of some large space, and judging from the little his eyes had managed to glimpse, it should be some kind of room. But how can it be?
Meanwhile, the pain in his stomach had not gone entirely, but it gave him a little space to gather himself together.
Calmly and weakly, he anchored himself up with his hand and then opened his eyes, partially breaking free from the reverie.
He realized he was lying a few inches from a desk and a chair.
"H-how is this possible?" he murmured, his head swinging in and out of focus, making him doubt if he was really awake. Slowly, he pulled himself up to the chair, using it as support, before sitting on it.
His eyes first fell on the desk in front of the chair. It was a bit large and wooden, and on it were a parchment, a drenched one, and a pen lying carelessly on it. Then a silver cup lay tipped over on the parchment, with its liquid spilled over both the parchment and the table.
The edges of the parchment where the liquid spilled seemed disintegrated, as if chewed by insects.
Kai Ren shook his head. If not for the pain in his tummy, he would have termed whatever this was a dream.
His eyes moved further as he admired the wall sconces that stood beside the table at its right and left side. The silver had simple and plain designs, almost covered with wax. It held thick and big candles that illuminated the room, along with other candles located elsewhere that Kai Ren was yet to see.
Kai Ren's eyes roamed higher, weakly, until they landed on the mirror resting on the table and leaning on the wall behind it.
"Wh—" Kai Ren gasped. He lifted his hand and touched the skin of his face.
"Wh-what is this?" The face that stared back at him from the mirror, with the same expression, wasn't his face.
"No way," he muttered.
"Could I have transmigrated?" he added but paused instantly, savoring his voice, it wasn't his voice, too.
He rubbed his eyes and stared closer at the mirror, forcing his eyes to dilate to be sure of what he was seeing. But then, he spiraled out of focus again and fell into a retrospective trance.
…
"I can't imagine life without you," Kai Ren began with a suiting smile of anticipation on his face.
Then gently, with smooth grace, he knelt down on one knee, his demeanor sharp and sexy, his swagger and composure at their apex. His smile was seductive, and his courage unwavering.
"Sarah," he went on, his voice chilly, filled with anticipation and want. Then it even lowered into something deeper, deep enough to move the bones, and with that thick tension and intense pressure, he voiced it out:
"Will… you… marry… me?"
The tension was high, the air thick. He could see his co-workers feeling the tension too—many grabbed onto something as they waited for her reply. He could feel Vanessa clutching tightly onto her folder as though she was the one being proposed to. But Kai Ren only held onto hope as they waited for a reply and...
Ka-ka-ka-PRRRRRRRRRRRT!
A horrible, mechanical screech shattered the moment.
Kai Ren blinked. The noise came from his toaster.
"Oh, come on!" he yelled, his grand imagination collapsing along with his dignity.
He wasn't in an office full of cheering colleagues. He was kneeling on the floor of his tiny apartment… proposing to his toaster.
The toast machine, instead of giving out that normal 'ding' sound signifying a toast was done, went haywire and didn't even release the toast.
Kai Ren hit it once, no budge. Then again, no budge. Then again, this time harder, as the toast machine spat out his toast, one part totally burnt. But Kai Ren didn't care.
"You said yes!" he declared proudly. Then...
SPARK!
The socket sparked, burned, and died.
"Great," he muttered dryly. "There goes my last outlet."
He calmly picked up his toast, placed it on his plate, smeared butter on it, and covered it with the second toast like a sandwich before turning and walking to the other side of his little apartment.
...
Kai Ren stared at the mirror with a very lovely smile stretching across his face. He calmly adjusted his brown tie and kept it perfectly between the collars of his white shirt, still smiling and daydreaming happily.
With a gracious ease, that of an angel, he threw his best brown suit over his shoulder, tucked it on its collar like a rich man before buttoning it with calm grace, that smile not leaving his face.
"I think being rich is going to fit me perfectly," he sneered with a wink at his reflection, which winked back at him, that smile not leaving his face.
Why would it? Today was the day he had been waiting for, the day that his devoted five years of relentless hard work was going to pay or start paying. The day they would officially announce his game and have him sign the contract. And then he would start to earn in hundreds of thousands and millions of dollars.
He admired himself through the mirror, and his lips curled further. His pale face was weak-looking but happy, and his green-blue eyes were wet and weary. His obsidian-black hair was shiny and well-packed, he made sure he smeared it very well so it looked smooth and neat.
The suit fit him well enough to pretend he wasn't living on instant noodles.
Looking at how the suit hung on his frame, one needed not to be told that he was on a very poor diet and that he was skinny.
Well, he was used to his stature and the card life dealt him.
His room, though at its very apex of tidiness, still looked like a war zone between poor and poverty. Almost all the things in it were old, outdated, and faulty.
Well, all except for one thing… except for...
**Miss Diamond.**
Miss Diamond was seated like a goddess on top of a red heart-shaped little case, which Kai Ren had desperately left open. It was the $7000 worth ring he had purchased with one of his last savings for Sarah.
"Oh, Sarah…" Saying her name brought joy to his very heart. The girl, despite his condition, was by his side providing emotional support and otherwise. And not just that... her beauty was so good that he couldn't think of anyone else to be with.
He picked up the ring with a cozy smile and pecked the little beautiful diamond that was perched on it.
"Kai Ren," he called to himself. "You are a master planner."
Of course he was. He chose the biggest day of his life as the day to propose to Sarah, and according to his daydreams, it was going to make history... it would be a tense, emotional, and very romantic moment that would make his co-workers cry, applaud, and finally give him some respect and… dignity.
Kai glanced at his phone to check the time, as he had no watch or clock.
"Damn, it's seven! I need to be at the company by eight." He walked over to his toast, planning to rush over as quickly as possible. But on the first bite, his tongue shed tears.
"Urgh," he groaned, smacking his lips in great distaste. The burnt part of the toast was bitter and eerily crunchy.
But Kai Ren had had worse as food, and he wasn't planning to have the best day of his life on an empty stomach, neither would he waste such precious food. So therefore, taste buds be damned.
Anyways, he rushed over the toast, diluted it down with a cup of water since he had no coffee or tea, and then sped off to work.
…
Kai Ren was a guy that took public transport, normally a bus, and not just any kind, but the cheapest kind.
His routine since he got his job was that he walked up to the bus stop, took the cheapest transport to his workplace (which was three to four miles away from his apartment), followed the bus to the nearest stop by his office (about two miles away), then trekked the remaining distance.
But today, he wasn't preparing to be seen arriving on foot when he was about to be officially commended for the game he had spent his past five years working on.
Therefore, he took a cab that dropped him right off in front of his company.
After he clambered down from the cab, he looked at the company from base to top, the glass facade of the grand skyscraper reflecting coolly under the subtle morning sun. On the very top of the skyscraper was the name built boldly on it: NovaDream Interactive (the leading game company in his city).
A smile tugged at Kai Ren's face. He also noticed the luxurious cars parked in front of the company and couldn't help but imagine the kind that would be inside the company's parking space.
Those cars meant one thing, the high owners of the company were already there, ready to let him sign his contract and officially announce him as the owner of the trending "The villians legacy: dev to devil" game, under some terms which he couldn't remember all of, but one he remembered clearly: the game would still be devoted under the company as one of theirs.
At this thought, his smile widened.
He walked up the few flights of stairs that led into the company and disappeared into the building.
…
A few moments later, Kai Ren stepped out of his office and entered into an elevator that led to the top floor.
The top floor, where he had only been a few times, was where his boss's office and other high-level workers were located. It was also the floor where the meeting and contract signing would be held.
The floor was also reserved for the executives and elite developers.
The digital chime rang. Ding! as Kai Ren stepped out onto the top floor of the grand company.
"Hey, congrats on your big day, man!" a coworker called out cheerfully.
Kai Ren smiled. "Thanks!"
Apart from that, no one else seemed to care. Then again, the people on this floor were already rich and successful. To them, this was just another Tuesday. So no one seemed to notice him.
"Well, they might not notice me now but soon they will" Kai Ren said to himself. He was correct because very soon, the meeting where he will sign his contract will begin.
The meeting was scheduled to start by 10 a.m., so it was only an hour left. But for now, Kai Ren's boss had called him to come to his office.
As he walked, Kai Ren couldn't help but admire the environment, walls lined with glowing display panels showcasing their games in motion: dragons breathing fire, warriors clashing, neon-lit cityscapes from Dead and Alive, Ether Run, and Sky Frontier. Posters of their best-selling titles framed the corridors, and shelves displayed trophies from gaming conventions.
Developers passed by, some in sleek suits, others in hoodies, sipping overpriced coffee. The entire floor smelled faintly of caffeine, ambition, and late-night code.
Kai Ren smiled nervously. "Yup… definitely another Tuesday."
He reached his boss's office door, a solid mahogany slab instead of the glass doors used for everyone else. He couldn't see inside.
He turned the handle and stepped in without knocking, too excited to think.
Then froze.
All the excitement drained from his face. His jaw dropped.
Just then, it dawned on him what he had done. He was too happy that he forgot he had to knock and be let in first.
But when he walked in, it was a whole different story.
A whole different scene. The horror of not knocking before entering dissolved into something deeper, something eccentric.
His jaw dropped, his heart racing awkwardly. He could only stand and stare. Even his mouth didn't seem to be able to form words.
"S-s-sarah?"