This life was his… tenth? Eleventh? Or his twelfth life so far?
"Leonard, are you trying to ruin our firm's reputation? Come out! The police are here."
"Murderous bastard! How could we have possibly had someone such as him as a consulting detective?"
Settled inside the office in a leather chair at the table, Leonard hung his head backward, eyes drooped shut. His tie was loose, hair fluttering with every gust of wind that blew into the office. His breathing was steady.
He was calm, despite the chaos outside his locked office.
Gently, his chapped lips curled in a faint amusement.
"Right… It is my twelfth life so far. How exhausting."
1000 total years he has lived. And each life was in a different body. Rebirth after rebirth. Growing from infancy again and again, every life never like the last.
It was torturing. Mind experimental, he'd call it.
In each of these lives, he's had all kinds of experience, he was no longer sure there was anything new left. Be it friendship, kinship, even love. He had dabbled in countless sports, arts, and jobs.
He'd lived it all.
Yet…
Humming barely audible, he expelled a deep breath.
Being a consulting detective in this life, the firm he worked with shifted upon a case they were working on, turning to cater to the criminal organization under investigation.
In all 1000 years he'd lived, his daughter, six years old, the only child he had ever had ended up killed in the process. Not only that, but the murder was pinned on him.
Simply put, he was set up.
Leonard could not fight back.
He was a man who analyzed, strategized and calculated when needed, yet he miscalculated. And that one miscalculation cost him everything, his child, his responsibility to which he owed protection.
But then he understood that the odds were completely stacked against him. His analyzes were complete and fighting back was useless. There was nothing he could do. He was powerless. Hence, he stepped back.
He accepted his weakness.
At this moment, Leonard was in his own thoughts only.
This so-called gift of rebirth felt no more than a curse at some point. He grew exhausted. At first, it made him feel he was special. But the longer he lived, the idea was no more the same. Not once, in a single one of this life did he find himself.
A life that lacked purpose was after all meaningless. Every person had something they wanted, a reason they had to live. And naturally, Leonard had a desire too.
A fulfilled life.
'I have gone about it in every way possible, and eventually came to understand the only way through which I intend to have this…'
It was 5 in the evening. The sun had begun setting, painting the sky in golden brown. Birds scattered about, chirping as the cold breeze blew, rustling the papers on his desk.
His chair was turned and he was facing the opened window.
This world, owned by heaven… "I want it."
"Leonard! We will break this door down!"
"Open the door and have a word with us. Hiding in there like a coward will change nothing! Your sentences can be reduced!"
Leonard took a deep breath. He reached for the pistol behind him on his desk. He grabbed it, loaded it and examined it for a second.
A man like him had always observed the world from the smallest of places he could. There were many things he wished to see, things that only he could understand.
And so while watching the sunset, Leonard rested the tip of the pistol against his temple.
"I will die again. And when I am reborn, I will begin life as I always do, but with only one endeavor." His finger curled around the trigger. "A life of fulfillment. Regardless of the filth of this world, in all its cruelty, it will be mine to own and observe with absolute freedom. And there will be nothing to stand in my way."
He will be the strongest in every form this world requires.
He can.
Leonard is an adaptee after all, a man with limitless potential to adapt to just about anything. And for that, it cannot be so impossible to own the world.
His lips stretched much wider. It was only for a moment.
Then he pulled the trigger.
The conclusion followed as,
Leonard, after one thousand years of existence, twelve different lives, was dead.
AGAIN.
Cause: WILLING SUICIDE.
…..
All Life Below Heaven Shares The Law Of Humanity.
Above all lies Heaven, the origin of existence. And below Heaven are countless worlds.
And within these worlds exists only but one gamble… STRENGTH.
He vomited blood violently.
He could barely open his eyes. Pain hammered his skull and his blood raced too quickly, every breath searing his chest.
"Vellis Alessien! There is only an hour until the sun rises! You will burn if you do not confess!"
Vellis?
Memories from an infant's cries, childhood scenes, and the life of a teenager he had never lived assaulted him. They collided with his own countless memories, causing an excruciating headache.
"How could a child be so vile?! Selling out his continent for what?! Where is his loyalty?! Seal the continent! Root out spies and execute them immediately!"
Leonard forced his eyes open.
'Hm…?'
His body felt smaller, lighter like he had shrunk into a boy. He was no infant like he expected.
'What's this?'
The air smelled of wet stone. He could still see the crowd clearly even in the darkness. A few… no, hundreds of people were layered in rows and seated. It felt like this was a theater and they were watching a show which was him.
But the hardest oddity was the elders who had white beards. They were clearly very old, yet for some reason, they were brimming with vitality.
"Your Imperial Majesty, shall we proceed?" a man asked.
At the right of an elevated stone platform, a middle aged man sat, dressed in a red royal garment cinched well at the waist by a large golden belt. Against his shoulders was pinned a fine cape. Golden ornaments circled around his forehead like a ribbon.
Leonard lifted a brow at the emblem resting on his chest. He was royalty. Black haired with a framed stern face, his emerald eyes clear.
This man was the emperor. "What else is there to do?"
The elder trembled. "Your Imperial Majesty… he is a child. To execute him–"
"King Alessien," the emperor interrupted. "Your Eastern Kingdom stands as the strongest force within my continent, yes. But your second son committed treason. A 6-star case, enough to demand my personal presence. Tell me, does he deserve pardon?"
The elder, King Alessien, slowly turned to look at the sixteen year old boy chained before the entire crowd.
Leonard evenly held his gaze.
He was absolutely calm, slowly beginning to make sense of his situation.
He has realized that he did indeed rebirth as usual. But this time was different. He did not come as a baby, neither was this Earth. This was a world completely foreign to him and in the middle of this chaos, he was arranging the new memories and information in his head.
This teenager with long white hair and whiteless black eyes had been dragged from his dorm and brought here.
What could a sixteen year old possibly have done to summon the mighty figure of an emperor who ruled an entire continent?
Treason!
According to the accusations laid, he sold information to the Regular Humans. But that was complete crap. His memories said otherwise. This boy wasn't guilty at all. He was not only docile but he was far too weak as well.
The guard by the side noticed his lack of reaction to the situation and glared at him. "Do you think putting on a tough font will save you?"
"Hm." Leonard looked at him. "Will the situation turn around if I cry?"
His plain sarcasm earned him a hateful glare from the guard. "You!–"
"Vellis Alessien!"
The platform suddenly trembled as the emperor thundered.
"One week! As Emperor of the Orvane Continent, I grant you seven days to prove your innocence. You have claimed not guilty from the start and a ruler must always remain impartial. I do not wish for injustice, hence you will be given time to expose the true culprit who has framed you and present proof. If you fail, you will be executed and no pleas will be heard."
His gaze shifted to the king.
"I trust we understand one another, King Alessien. This is only how far I can go. I can do no more than this."
King Alessien fell to his knees. "Your magnanimity is world shaking, Your Imperial Majesty!"
The emperor surveyed the crowd. "Any objections?"
No one dared speak.
All heads remained lowered.
"Release him!"
But Leonard's gaze was unfocused.
'Seven days?'
He wondered.
'This place… can I still achieve my goal? What is the percentage of my chance?"
In this world, there were two sides to the human race. The Regular Humans who had no special mutation and were simply called "Humaas"
And then, these people before him who occupied this continent. They were no regular humans, but they were a part of the other side of the human race, called…
…The Super Humans.