Darkness pressed against my skull like a tightening vice.
What should I do? What should I do?
I'm going to die.
No, no, no — I don't want to die.
My breath shattered into fragments as panic tore through my chest.
"Someone save me… help me… why aren't you all doing anything?"
I looked at my troops — the very soldiers who swore loyalty to me.
"Are you guys not bothered!? Aren't you supposed to help me!? Save me!?"
My heartbeat thrashed wildly.
My thoughts spiraled.
My voice cracked.
What the fuck is going on?
God, please… someone…
Save me.
Then—
I felt no pain.
My trembling fingertips rose to my throat.
I expected to feel torn flesh… exposed bone… warm blood… anything—
but instead, my skin was smooth.
Healed. Completely.
A whisper echoed in my mind — calm, deep, unshaken:
(My lord… you cannot die from such tricks. You are the Wrath. You are a god yourself.)
A god?
Again?
Every chapter of my life was turning into some impossible revelation.
Chaos swirled inside my head.
Why was I always thrown into situations like this?
But one thing became clear:
I can regenerate.
I am… somehow… a god.
Even with this weak magic.
Even with this powerless body.
Six seconds passed since my throat was sliced open.
Saigō spoke, his voice casual — playful even — as if my near-death had amused him.
"Hey now, it's not cool to ignore someone who's speaking to you.
It's even more interesting that not only your soldiers, but even you can regenerate, Mr. Traveler.
But isn't it rude to not tell me your name… or who you really are?"
I swallowed the last of my shaking breath.
"I have no intention of telling you who I am.
But… my name is Crish."
He smirked.
"I heard what I needed to hear. I'll take my leave.
I was ordered to kill you, but given the situation… something interesting is about to happen."
He stepped back, eyes sharp with excitement.
"And I need to report this to our God.
I wasn't commanded by him directly this time.
Because this sword and I work for our god alone."
My stomach tightened.
"I wasn't even going to kill you seriously — I just took someone's request.
I might get scolded… but if he annoys me, I'll just kill him too.
I hate being scolded.
You get what I mean, right?"
He pointed his blade lazily toward me.
"I'm expecting something interesting from you.
Don't fail me."
My right-hand man stepped forward, fury burning through his eyes.
"You think you can run from us? I don't know who sent you or who this god of yours is, but you aren't escaping."
Saigō laughed — cold, sharp, a blade of sound.
"Weak.
All of you.
Why don't you fix both of your arms first?"
Slice.
He vanished.
Blood sprayed across the floor.
My man's arms hit the ground before he even realized they were gone.
Shock froze him — froze everything.
He forgot to regenerate.
I placed my hand on him and regenerated his limbs myself.
He snapped back, breathing heavily.
"I… thank you, my lord. I'm sorry.
We're weak right now… that's why—"
But the truth hit me harder:
It was my fault.
Because I'm weak.
Because I'm not at full power.
Because I let this happen.
Humiliation and fear coiled in my chest like chains.
And then… without me asking anything… he began to speak.
"My lord, I'm sorry I didn't tell you when we first met.
I, Saigo Karna, am the first ruler of this kingdom — the one who built it."
My breath stopped.
"Achaemenid is the kingdom I built for peace and love.
And the man we met — the one who tried to kill you — is from my bloodline.
His skills… his name… even his face resembles my son."
So he was…
"My great-great-great-great grandson, most likely."
He looked downward, a shadow crossing his face.
"When I built Achaemenid, I ruled for over thirty years.
Everything was peaceful.
I don't know how I died… or what happened after.
The last memory I have is fighting a creature who called himself a god.
He killed me."
His fists clenched.
"My memories from that time are erased.
Even now… I don't know why."
He continued, voice steady but filled with pain:
"This kingdom… should have been ruled by my clan.
But the current king is Tenno Minato.
Tenno… was the family name of my best friend."
Pieces in my mind clicked together like a puzzle finally starting to form.
"I told him… if I die, everything I own will pass to him.
I trusted him with my life.
Then I went to the battlefield."
His eyes met mine.
"That's all I remember before I died."
Silence swallowed the room.
The picture was becoming clear… but still incomplete.
I nodded slowly.
"It's fine. You didn't tell me earlier — but now that you have, it's okay.
So you really were the first king…
And your best friend's family is ruling now."
A terrifying thought hit me.
"So the only one who could order Saigō Takamori — God's Sword — would be either the king…
or the god he works for."
Saigō had said he wasn't ordered by the god.
Which meant—
The king ordered him to kill me.
My suspicions since the first day…
were right.
Everything was falling into place — a dark, ugly place.
And then it hit me again—
"You said I'm a god too. What does that even mean?
How am I a god?"
My man bowed.
"You were always a god, my lord.
In your past life, you never told us more than the truth —
that you were kicked out of the heavens at age five…
and lived here in the lower realm."
My heart froze.
"But you seemed to know yourself well back then.
So I assumed you remembered even now.
If you don't… then your powers are not fully restored.
Your memories are sealed."
He stepped back.
"To unseal them…
you must clear all the trials."
"Trials… so they're all connected to my past?"
"Even I don't know," he admitted.
"You must see them yourself."
I sighed softly.
"Well… it's not like I can run away now, right?"
He nodded.
"We will rest for now.
He won't return.
He is a man of his word…
or so I believe."
"Dismiss."
The soldiers vanished.
The room became silent.
I lay back, closing my eyes.
I couldn't sleep — not after everything — but I let exhaustion drag me down.
Three hours passed.
Finally…
I felt sleep approaching.
To be continued…