Years passed… but Leon's life never truly moved on.
Each day, the pain of the past cut a little deeper.
He grew up in the shadow of fear, hatred, and rage.
He never forgot the day his family was slaughtered before his eyes.
But he lived on—because he had no choice.
He was the last of the Aldrake bloodline.
The town where Leon lived had become a husk of its former glory.
The Aldrake estate was no longer a home—it was a ruin, a memory buried in dust and silence.
Each morning began with the same bleak routine.
His frail body, worn and withered from years of suffering, struggled to keep up with the weight of the past.
As the days blurred together, Leon felt himself fading into the emptiness.
He was alive, but not living.
Trapped in a world that had taken everything from him.
One morning, while gazing out the dusty window of his small room, he noticed something.
A shadow in the distance.
Faint sounds reached his ears—echoes of voices carried by the wind.
There was something strange about them… familiar, almost haunting.
And then—behind him—a flash of light.
A screen.
That screen.
The one that had first appeared on the day everything changed.
[System Activated.]
Leon turned slowly.
The glowing blue interface floated in the air, just like it had back then.
It was cold.
Unfeeling.
He stared, breath caught in his throat.
He hadn't seen it in years… yet he'd felt its presence.
As if it had been watching. Waiting.
[User: Alaric Leon Aldrake]
[Hatred toward the Royal Bloodline has reached a critical level.]
[Desire to kill the Emperor: Confirmed.]
The words pierced his soul.
The Emperor.
The man behind it all.
The one who ordered the massacre of the Aldrake family.
Leon clenched his fists.
He remembered the look in his father's eyes that day… the blood staining his sister's small hands… the silence that followed.
And now, the system offered him a choice.
The screen flickered again, revealing two glowing options:
> [Choose:]
• Kill the Emperor and take your revenge
• Return to the past and start over
Leon froze.
His heart pounded in his chest.
For years, he had dreamed of vengeance—of driving his blade into the heart of the man who had stolen everything from him.
But would it be enough?
Would revenge truly bring peace?
Or would it just be the beginning of another nightmare?
His hand hovered in the air, trembling.
To kill the Emperor… would mean throwing himself into the depths of a war he could not win—not yet.
But to go back…
To return to the moment before it all fell apart…
To try again…
To protect them.
Could he bear it?
To see their faces again… knowing what was to come?
The fear of failing twice—it clawed at his chest.
But somewhere, buried deep inside the darkness, a flicker of hope sparked to life.
Maybe… just maybe… this was his true chance.
[Choice Confirmed: Return to the Past.]
The screen pulsed.
Leon's vision blurred.
His knees buckled, and light swallowed the room.
He felt his body twisting, tearing through time.
His breath was ripped from his lungs.
His thoughts scattered like ashes in the wind.
And then—silence.
When he opened his eyes again… the sun was shining.
The scent of spring blossoms drifted on the wind.
Birds chirped, and distant voices echoed through the estate.
He looked down at his hands.
Small.
Unscarred.
Childlike.
He was back.
Back in the Aldrake garden.
Back in the moment before everything changed.
And for the first time in years…
He smiled.
Because this time, everything would be different.