Chapter 19: The Stranger in the Cave

When Ren opened his eyes, he wasn’t in the valley anymore.

He was in a cave.

A fire crackled nearby, casting flickering shadows across the stone walls.

A man sat beside it, his features hidden by the dim light.

“You’re awake,” the man said without looking at him. “You were half-dead when I found you.”

Ren groaned, pushing himself up. “Yeah… Thanks, I guess.”

The man didn’t reply immediately.

He simply watched the fire. Then, after a long pause, he muttered—

“I wouldn’t have helped you… but you remind me of someone.”

Ren blinked. “Really? Who?”

Silence.

Ren scratched his head, awkward. “Uh—sorry if I annoyed you. I should get going—”

“Why is that thing inside you?”

Ren froze.

His heart pounded.

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“…What?”

The man turned his gaze to Ren. “You don’t know?”

Ren swallowed. “Know… what?”

The man stood and placed a hand on Ren’s chest.

Something inside him… stirred.

Darkness flooded his vision.

A voice—deep and ancient—whispered.

“Who…? You…!! What do you want, father?”

Ren gasped. The voice—it wasn’t his.

It came from inside him.

The man narrowed his eyes. “So you were the one using my power. You’ve been leeching off this kid, haven’t you?”

The voice inside Ren snarled.

“HOW DARE YOU! I AM NOT A LEECH! He is my… my stupid brother.”

Ren felt his body tense. Brother?

The voice continued, bitter and filled with rage.

“Our mother… she couldn’t handle forming both of us. So I linked my soul to his. I took the demonic energy so she could make a human body. But she… she couldn’t handle the mana drain. She died.”

Silence.

The man clenched his fists.

His rage was palpable.

He was going to kill Ren.

Ren braced himself.

But—

Something changed.

The man’s eyes softened.

A memory surfaced in his mind.

“It’s called a Ren flower. In my lands, it symbolizes resilience.”

A voice from his past.

A voice he hadn’t heard in a long time.

Lyria.

He hesitated.

Then, he exhaled.

“No.” His voice was firm. “I need to protect him.”

The demon inside Ren growled.

“Hey, brat. Protect the body at all costs.”

Ren heard himself scoff. “I was going to do that anyway.”

The presence inside him faded.

When Ren came to, the man was watching him carefully.

“What happened?” Ren asked.

The man turned away. “Nothing.”

Ren frowned. “That thing inside me… it’s not my enemy?”

The man didn’t answer.

Instead, he simply disappeared.

Vanished—without a single trace.

Ren was left alone.

Alone, with nothing but questions.