South Korean Military Base – Interrogation Room
The metal door slammed open. Every soldier inside snapped to attention, heels together, backs straight, fear tightening their throats.
"General Kang!" they shouted in unison, saluting.
Kang Do-Hyun walked in without slowing—a thirty-five-year-old, the youngest general in South Korea, and the man every enemy whispered about.
The Reaper.
His eyes swept across the room, cold enough to silence even the air. He took his seat without a word.
Across from him sat Min Jun, twenty-four years old, hands bound behind a steel chair. Two years in the South Korean military had molded her into discipline and strength.
But none of that mattered.
Because Min Jun was a traitor. She had sold classified intel to North Korea for a price no ordinary soldier could ever earn. And yet… she smiled. Mocking. Confident. As if she still believed she held the advantage.
Kang's expression did not change.
He simply turned to an officer.
"Bring me the box under my desk."
The officer bowed and hurried out.
The silence that followed filled the room like smoke, suffocating, acidic. Min Jun's false smile twitched.
Kang finally spoke, his tone soft and chilling.
"You betrayed your country for money." He leaned forward, eyes narrowing.
"Do you think I wouldn't notice?"
Her eyes hardened, but before she could speak, the officer returned, holding a heavy metal box with both hands as if carrying a bomb.
Kang opened the box. Slowly. Almost gently.
Inside: a pair of industrial pliers.
Several officers paled. Min Jun's breath faltered.
Kang stood, pliers in hand. And for the first time… he smiled.
Not warmth. Not kindness.
A predator's grin.
"Did you think," he whispered as he gripped her left hand, "that because you are a woman… I would show mercy?" He didn't wait for her answer.
He clamped the pliers over her index fingernail and tore it off.
Blood sprayed across the floor. Min Jun's scream split the air—raw, animal, agonized. Her body shook violently, but Kang's grip was unbreakable.
One by one—the middle, ring, pinky—he ripped each nail away with precise brutality.
Her shrieks became broken gasps. Tears and blood dripped together onto the steel floor.
Kang's expression never changed.
"Did you think the information you leaked was real?" he asked, voice low, cruel. Her eyes widened, horror replacing arrogance.
"That intel was bait."
The pliers tightened again.
"You didn't outsmart us." He leaned close, breath cold against her ear. "You just proved how cheap your loyalty is."
Another nail ripped free. Another scream.
The soldiers didn't move. Not because they weren't ordered, but because they feared the man holding the pliers—Kang Do-Hyun. A soldier forged by war. A general feared by enemies and comrades alike.
Reaper.
He straightened, ready to remove the last fingernail—when suddenly…
A violent shock stabbed through his chest. His heart pounded like a war drum.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
His vision blurred. The pliers fell from his hand.
"General Kang!? General!"
Shouts erupted. Hands reached toward him. The world twisted and darkened.
So this is how I die…
Not on the battlefield… but because of a heart attack? He wanted to laugh, but even that slipped away.
His last sight was Min Jun trembling in blood and terror.
Then—darkness consumed everything.
Awakening as Leo
When Kang opened his eyes again, the world was different. The air smelled of flowers, sunlight poured through tall windows, and the sharp, metallic scent of the interrogation room was gone.
"Young Master… Young Master, please wake up!"
A voice echoed in the soft, warm light.
Kang sat up abruptly, confusion gripping him. He was in a completely unfamiliar room, with a ceiling far too high and ornate for any military base.
Youthful hands—not his own—grasped at him.
A man in a butler uniform stood over him, eyes wide with relief.
"Young Master Leo, you are awake! Thank goodness, Young Master!"
Leo?
"Who the hell is Leo? I am Kang Do-Hyun!" His voice was sharp, naturally commanding.
The butler froze.
Kang glanced at a mirror across the room. The reflection staring back was not his thirty-five-year-old, battle-hardened self.
It was a young man.
Eighteen years old. Slender. Smooth-skinned. No scars. No blood.
A sudden, piercing headache exploded in his skull. Memories that were not his own crashed into him like a wave.
Leo… noble… young master…
The weight of countless unfamiliar moments pressed on him. Something about this life—the childhood, the family, the love—was real, yet not his.
A flicker of panic ignited. Kang tried to focus, to reconcile the blood-soaked interrogation and the serene, sunlit room. But his mind felt like a broken mirror.
Two Children in a Garden
A tiny boy—Leo. A cheerful girl—Evelyn.
They chased each other between flowerbeds, laughing with joy.
Evelyn suddenly stopped, puffed her cheeks, and declared:
"Leo, when we grow up, let's get married."
Little Leo's face turned red.
"Yes! I will marry you!"
Their families watched from afar.
Leo's father, Duke Drake Rosard, was one of the five great dukes and the strongest man in the entire kingdom. A monstrous swordsman feared by generals
Evelyn's father, Arzen Bellamont, was also a swordsman—not as powerful as Duke Drake, yet one of the best in the kingdom.
Both families smiled at the children's affection. The engagement was arranged for Leo and Evelyn.
As years passed, their childhood promise slowly blossomed into real love.
Diverging Talents
Although he was the son of a legendary swordsman, Leo had no interest in swords.
He loved books. He loved magic.
But his mana was terribly low.
He wasn't a genius. He wasn't powerful. He wasn't anything special.
To the world, he became just an ordinary young master who failed to live up to his bloodline.
Even so, Evelyn loved him…
Until the Day He Turned Fifteen.
The time came to enter the Royal Academy—the school for the kingdom's elite.
The academy only accepted students with outstanding strength or talent. Even a king's child would be rejected if they lacked power.
Evelyn was accepted with praise, but…
Leo was rejected.
He failed the entrance exam. His magic was too weak. His sword talent was nonexistent.
He watched Evelyn leave for the academy while he remained behind. That was the beginning of the end.
Two Years Passed
They contacted each other by letters—just enough to know what was happening.
At the academy, Evelyn met countless powerful students: warriors, mages, nobles with overwhelming talent.
Among the strongest was the Third Prince, Julian Valerian—a genius swordsman far stronger than she was.
She admired him at first because he was powerful and had a good personality. Slowly, that admiration turned into affection.
She tried to hide it. She tried to ignore it. She told herself she still loved Leo.
But now she understood:
Strength mattered. Status mattered. Future mattered.
And Leo, her childhood love, was nowhere near the world she now lived in.
A Prince's Confession
The third prince confessed—twice.
The first time she rejected him, saying she already had a fiancé. She didn't write about the confession in her letters to Leo—she thought it would hurt him.
But the real hurt had already begun inside her heart.
Time passed. The number of letters dropped.
Julian didn't stop confessing. He continued to express his love.
Evelyn admired her mother, Natasha—the kingdom's best swordwoman, the only woman who became a Sword Master, a warrior who could rival the Dukes.
Because of that admiration, she began to admire Julian.
They sparred many times. They became close.
When two years ended, he confessed again.
This time she said:
"I want to talk to someone, and then I will give you an answer."
The Break
Evelyn returned to see Leo.
Leo opened his room door excitedly—she had come back after two years.
But her expression was distant.
Leo asked, "What happened, Evelyn? Why do you look so sad?"
"I am sorry, Leo," she said softly.
"I loved you. I really did love you… but I realized that love is not the only thing we need.
In these two years, I met many people and learned many things."
Leo's heart started to pound.
"I found a guy—Julian, the third prince who I admired so much. Now… no… I love him."
His heart cracked.
"In these years, I learned that love is not the only thing in life.
To live, we need to become stronger. Power also matters.
Leo… we need to go separate ways now. I didn't cheat on you. I want to be honest with my heart.
I am going to accept his confession, and we are going to Senior Academy together.
You can hate me as much as you want. People's perspectives change with time."
She placed a small box on the table.
"This is the ring you gave me. I return it to you."
"My father will send the official engagement cancellation letter to your family.
We came a long way… but our paths are different now."
And with that—she left.
Shattered
Leo shattered completely.
His father was disappointed in him. The household whispered about him.
And now… his beloved Evelyn was going to spend the next three years at the Senior Academy with the prince who had taken her heart.
Leo couldn't bear it.
He started thinking he was the most worthless man in existence.
Lonely. Powerless. Unwanted.
He couldn't accept the reality.
Then he wrote a letter:
"I am sorry."
And that night—he took his own life.