Darkness.
Since the beginning of time, the primordial fear that crept through human beings is darkness.
No one knows the reason, some said it was a fear of being in their mother's womb, some said it was because of lack of vision, and some said that it was because of the loneliness contained within.
The instinctive fear to get out and see the light is also etched on human beings, doing everything in their power to get out of this cold and lonely place.
Just like now.
Beep…
A sound is gradually appearing.
Beep…
Huh? A sound?
Beep…
It's getting louder.
Beep!
I'm alive?
This time, the sound was loud enough to stimulate his brain, prompting him to open his eyes.
"Hah!"
It hurts!
Looking around, he saw himself in an unfamiliar place, laying in a bed.
Wait.
'Am I on life support?' Hearing the beeping sound and seeing the ventilator in his mouth, he immediately came into conclusion.
'My body hurts!' He winced in pain before trying to find the button that can call nurses.
Resisting the immense pain, he clumsily waved his hand to reach for the remote control but due to his poor motor skills, his hand bumped into it instead, causing it to fall down the floor.
*Crack*
Resisting the urge to curse, he hurriedly calmed himself down,
'I can barely move my body, how can I reach for the nurse...' Fortunately, his prayers were answered and the door opened, revealing a nurse wearing her uniform.
The nurse, who just opened the door, saw the hand that was hanging on the bed and hurriedly looked at the man whose eyes were wide open.
After confirming he's awake, the nurse immediately ran and called the doctor.
He saw this and slowly withdrew his hand to the bed, not before giving a sigh of relief.
—
"Seijuro-san, how do you feel?" The doctor asked gently while putting a stethoscope on his chest.
Aside from him, there was the nurse and two other people.
Diego Seijuro, that's his name according to the doctor.
"My… body still hurts but that's it." Diego nodded with some difficulty.
"What about your head?" The doctor continued.
He hesitated for a while before replying.
"Doctor, I'm afraid I can't remember anything." He decided to tell the truth.
"I see…" The doctor frowned before turning to one of the people in the room.
"Ryuudou-san, I'm afraid we will have to do a CT scan on him. From the looks of it, the accident had caused him to hit his head, resulting in amnesia."
As the saying goes, the news from a frowning doctor is more dangerous than a smiling one.
"Damn it! It's my fault. I shouldn't have let him go outside that night…" An old man with white hair said angrily.
"Please doctor. Do whatever you can to recover his memory."
The doctor just nodded.
"Diego-kun, don't worry. They caught the truck driver—he's in prison now," The white haired old man turned to him with a look of self-blame and relief.
Diego just nodded, he can't really say anything since he doesn't know this old man.
Seeing this, the old man Ryuudou wanted to say something but ultimately sighed.
"We're going to have to call your parents… I must have disappointed your father for not taking care of you here."
"Though, I don't even know their number." He muttered but Diego still heard it clearly.
"Don't mind him. There must be a way to contact them." Seeing his blank look, a blue haired guy wearing glasses assured him before asking.
"I'm Ryuudou Issei, do you remember me? I can be considered your cousin." He asked with a formal tone but Diego can hear the expectations of it.
"... I'm sorry Issei-san… I don't remember anything. If you didn't tell me my name. I also wouldn't know it." Those words cause sadness to flash their eyes, especially the old man who was cursing the truck driver.
The doctor stopped his check up and turned to them.
"The patient's body is almost recovered, after two days, he should be discharged here." The doctor turned to him.
"You're really lucky, you're bloody and beaten up when you got here yet after three days, you're almost recovered. You should be careful of vehicles in the future, Seijuro-san."
"Ryuudou-san, Issei-kun. The patient has to rest for now. We'll do the CT scan tomorrow." The doctor stood up and left, followed by the nurse.
"We'll bring you food tomorrow. Just focus on resting, alright? The police are handling everything." The old man said with a solemn look.
Issei just pushed his glasses and nodded at him.
After saying goodbye, both of them left, leaving him alone in the hospital bed.
"Did I just experience transmigration?" He wasn't very interested in fantasy but seeing is believing. Add to the fact that he's aware that he died.
Though, the result of his current pain shouldn't be from that. After all, he didn't remember being hit by a truck or whatnot.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to familiarize himself but after he opened it, an eerie scene welcomed him.
"This is..?'' His perception changed. Everything in the room looks the same, if you're ignoring the red cracks all around the room.
Like a broken mirror was shoved into his retina, forcing him to look at this broken scene.
Diego's eyes twitched in pain and his heart was full of fear. He felt nauseous and as he was about to grab the rails for support, his fingers accidentally came in contact with one of the 'lines' and he felt something snap.
'Huh?' He looked at rails in his bed which were chirped? He can't identify it clearly.
As he was looking clearly, the chirped rail magnified itself until the same feeling of an object being poked into his eye happened again, forcing him to pull himself backward. The stress of such events caused his eyes to blur and not long after, he lost consciousness.
—
"So thirsty…" An unknown time has passed and Diego woke up thirsty. He can barely remember what happened before he fell asleep and felt like he was dreaming.
A dream….
No!
Pushing himself up, he took a deep breath before looking around. Same ceiling, same lamp, same bed and same room.
He wasn't dreaming. He had died and is now in this hospital.
"I must have slept for a few hours, it's already night…" He sighed before a feeling of dryness came up to him.
"Thirsty…" As if his body finally learned how to respond, he waved his hand and a glass of water came in.
"Thanks." Diego chugged down the water with enjoyment, but as he was doing so, he suddenly remembered something.
Who handed him the water?
Knowing this, he stopped drinking and mechanically turned his head to the side.
There he saw an oddly familiar pink humanoid with two faces looking at him with a triggered look.
He blinked his eyes one time, then again,and again.
The humanoid is still not gone.
"Pffft!"
Darkness offers comfort as people grow up, a quiet solitude that soothes the nerves.
The quiet didn't scare him. He was used to being alone, and in moments like these, silence suited him—especially when deep in thought.
Of course, the premise is that he's alone.
Looking at the humanoid figure, Diego spit his drink in surprise before coughing violently.
*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*
The humanoid thing raised its hand and to his surprise, gently patted his back.
"What..?" Wiping his mouth, he took a good look again and became more familiar as he looked.
'Am I having hallucinations right now? My head was in pain and passed out earlier now that I think about it….' He tried to reason but the crimson figure just kept staring at him.
Not long after, he came to a realization.
"King Crimson?" As if King Crimson heard those words, he nodded slightly though his angry look didn't go away.
".... Can you give me another glass of water?" Diego gave the glass with some hesitation.
Surprisingly, the Stand nodded and grabbed the glass before going to the dispenser to get some water.
After a few moments, King Crimson came back which made Diego nod with gratitude.
He drank the water smoothly this time and after seeing this, King Crimson approached him before sticking to his body and disappeared.
After putting the glass away, Diego rubbed his temples with the corner of his mouth twitching.
He wasn't a die hard anime character but even he could recognize the so-called Stand. The amount of memes and musical references, especially the famous song Court of the Crimson King, prompted him to tackle the series.
Does that mean he's in Jojo now? But why didn't he have his own Stand that's based on him?
Confused, he summoned King Crimson again and waved his hand, making him do the same. This confirms that King Crimson is indeed his own Stand.
"Whatever, I'm gonna sleep first." Retracting King Crimson, Diego sighed tiredly. What a transmigration. His first encounter in this world is literally dying.
Closing his eyes, he seemed to forget something very important but due to the fatigue, he quickly fell asleep.
—
After waking up, the doctor immediately asked him to go for a CT scan which he agreed and some time later, his uncle came in, bringing a basket of fruits.
So here they are now, waiting for the results.
"Diego-kun. How are you feeling today?" The old man asked as he looked at him.
Diego, who was eating oranges, paused for a brief moment before swallowing it.
"My body is not in pain anymore and I can move my upper body without much difficulty."
Mr. Ryuudou gave a sigh in relief before looking at him again with self-blameed eyes.
"Diego-kun, I real—"
"It's fine…grandpa, it was an accident that no one saw. You don't need to keep blaming yourself." Diego replied after finishing the oranges.
He wasn't interested in this thing of pointing fingers, if he wants to blame someone, he can only blame the original self for being reckless and going out at night.
"G-Grandpa?" Ryuudou asked with a baffled look.
"I heard from Issei-san that I'm his cousin, so you should be my grandpa right? Or is that not the case?" Diego asked in confusion. He has no idea about this body's background which is a pain to deal with but luckily, he can just use the excuse of amnesia to get him out of the situation.
Yesterday, Issei said that he can be considered his cousin so by extension, this old man should be either his uncle or grandpa.
He's inclined to the latter though.
Hearing those words, Mr. Ryuudou felt like he was stabbed in the heart.
He wasn't old was he? Issei is his son!
"D-Diego-kun, you're mistaken, I'm not that old and Issei is my son, not my grandson." He cleared his throat and explained carefully.
Those words surprised Diego, he's a middle aged man?
Taking a look again, Mr. Ryuudou has an unshaven beard and white hair. It also doesn't help that he has those traditional Japanese clothes in him, like he was some guardian of a temple or something.
"... Why is your hair white and you have a beard too?"
"That's just dyed accidentally! And I don't shave my beard unless it's a special occasion." Mr. Ryuudou replied angrily while cursing a certain woman who accidentally poured a dye in his hair.
He didn't get the chance to remove it out of concern for Diego.
"I see, I'm sorry uncle. I misunderstood." Diego realized he's wrong and apologized.
Seeing his apologetic look, Mr Ryuudou just waved his hand and at the same time, satisfied because it was the first time this guy called him uncle.
"... Uncle, can you tell me about myself?" It was an embarrassing thing to ask but in order to gather more information, Diego had to do it.
Anyway, it's not like they're going to suspect anything.
"Well…. I may not be able to tell you much." Mr Ryuudou had a strange expression on his face before sighing.
"Why is that?" Diego asked with a confused look. Is the original body a loner or something?
Come to think of it, he heard that he has parents but so far, he didn't see any of them visiting.
"Diego-kun, you've only been in Fuyuki City for a month. Your parents asked you to stay here and study while also continuing the business that your mother used to do."
"Me and your father are close friends. I'm a monk and currently working on the Ryuudou Temple. Your father was once part of a school which was pretty famous back then until he met your mother who was a foreigner. After they got married, they stayed here for a while until you were born but eventually, she had to return to Italy along with your father, most likely to meet her parents."
It was a simple answer, his parents weren't here as he's the only one sent here for some reason.
"I see…" Diego nodded slowly and started thinking.
This place is called Fuyuki City and he'd been here for a month and already encountered an accident? That sounds like bad luck!
"Then can I ask why uncle hasn't contacted my parents yet?" Diego asked the most important question.
"I've been trying to but your parents are always like that, especially your mother. It's really hard to get in contact with them unless they want to. During your stay here, you call them from time to time, but I'm not sure now…."
"Why is that?" Things are getting even messier.
"You brought your personal belongings such as your phone, wallet, keys and ID but after the accident, it was gone. As if someone stole them… no, someone definitely stole them!" Mr Ryuudou said the last part with anger. He can't believe that there's people who won't let go of an injured man.
Diego gave a stiff nod and said, "It's okay."
He's alive so that's all that matters. He can get those things back while rebuilding his life.
As they were talking, Diego got a lot of information from his uncle and as much as he wanted to complain about his current situation, he just kept a straight face and listened attentively.
Things couldn't get any worse. Not only did he almost 'die' but some of his important things were stolen and the police didn't find any clues who stole it.
They already interrogated the truck driver but from the looks of it, he didn't steal anything, or at least that's the conclusion they came in.
Not long after, the doctor entered the room and asked his uncle to get out for a moment.
It must be the result of the CT scan.
"Seijuro-san, the results of your CT scan didn't show anything strange. You don't have a crack on your skull or anything which was a miracle so it's most likely that this amnesia will be temporary." The doctor started off with good news.
"But I suggest you take it easy for a while. There might be no injuries, but that doesn't mean you should ignore it if you experience headaches and such, do you understand?" The doctor finished with a serious look. The brain is the most mysterious organ of the body, not only is it very complex, it's also very delicate and fragile.
Since the CT scan didn't show anything, they couldn't do anything about it but just in case, he has to warn this kid.
"Understood." Diego nodded.
"You will be discharged tomorrow. Your body is almost healed." Seeing his serious look, the doctor sighed in relief before informing him.
"Thanks doctor."
After some pleasantries, the doctor was about to say goodbye but the board in his hand suddenly fell.
As it was about to fall to the ground, Diego effortlessly catches it and gives it back to the doctor.
"... Thanks." The doctor said in surprise, "You are healthier than I thought."
"It's all thanks to you doctor." Diego smiled in response.
Seeing him left, Diego's face turned serious and muttered, "It really is a future vision. The board fell just like I saw."
Before the doctor left, he tried using King Crimson's power to confirm its authenticity and to his surprise, it's not a dream or any form of hallucination.
King Crimson exists and he has a Stand.
Then again, the events yesterday should have proven that.
Using his future vision again, he saw that his uncle would come in the door and a few seconds later, it happened.
"What did the doctor say?"
"It's fine uncle. I have no internal bleedings or any injuries in my head. Though if I experienced headaches, I should consult him immediately." He replied.
"That's good…" Mr. Ryuudou heaved a sigh.
"I should be discharged tomorrow, as the doctor said." Diego added.
"I understand. We'll pick you up tomorrow."
Diego thought of something and asked his uncle, "Can you give me a glass of water?"
"Sure." Mr Ryuudou nodded and went to the dispenser.
After getting water, he went towards Diego but then he felt something.\
"Thanks uncle." Without realizing it, Mr. Ryuudou had already found himself handing the water in Diego's hands.
"Y-Yeah…" The old man scratched his head.
"By the way uncle, you look stressed. I suggest you go home first and fix your hair so no one will think you're an old man." Diego saw his confusion and said with a chuckle.
"I should ... .what did you say?!" His uncle glared at him angrily before rubbing his hair.
"It's just a suggestion uncle. I can take care of myself. You should take care of yourself too." Hearing that, Mr. Ryuudou can understand more or less.
He's fine now so there's no problem with him leaving.
"Then I'll go for now. Rest well, I'll find a way to contact your parents." As if forgetting his earlier confusion, he nodded and said goodbye.
Diego watched as his uncle left and said, "5 seconds of time have been erased from this world, leaving only the results." Looking at the water in his hand, he suppressed the huge urge to cackle and took a deep breath before laying down.
He isn't autistic.
He really does have a superpower.