[A/N: If you are reading this, please head over to the other novel. It is the same novel, but I could only add that novel to the contest, so I would appreciate it if you could leave a review and add it to your collection. I will still upload the novel here until that one picks up.]
[Athen City Library]
[Present]
[Kaizer's POV]
{Kaizer! Wake up! Blood!}
Grade's constant screams rang in my ears as I saw the past or future visions.
Blood gushed down my eyes as I lay paralyzed on the chair.
The visions varied from my parents to the history of Nexus Entity that I had tried so hard to forget.
The pain, suffering, and rage filled my body as the memories swirled in my vision vividly.
[Kaizer!]
The blood gradually soaked my clothes, and eventually, my eyes shone crimson.
The unbearable pain from the memories and the endless gushing blood stopped simultaneously.
I tried to stand up but staggered and fell to the floor.
I crawled and rested my back towards the wall, still feeling numb from the visions.
My mind went blank as I stared into nothingness.
Andreas and Kyro, the ones who were responsible for my suffering, her suffering, everyone's suffering, accountable for everything, were still alive.
I crawled back to the chair, but the visions of the cottage, Nexus Entity, and the demonic creatures were still vivid in my hazy vision, further amplifying my hallucination and weak mind.
I stumbled again but took hold of the chair and sat down.
[Kaizer? Are you okay? I am sorry for the nightmares. I can't control them.]
Grade materialized in an ethereal white flame flickering in front of my eyes.
His tone was filled with worry and guilt, but my mind was focused on the layer of blue hue covering the white flame.
After taking a few deep breaths to calm my agitated mind, I focused my attention on Grade.
"I don't think you have to worry about that. Actually, you will see the reason for my nightmares or rather visions soon enough." I answered Grade's persistent, worried questions in a calm tone.
The System panel materialized as I said those words, displaying multiple messages.
[SWIRL VISION (UNLOCKED)]
[SWIRL VISION* (S)]
[The eternal thread connects the past, present, and future. The vision of the swirl is the threads of eternity, a block universe; time exists forever.]
{Swirl vision connects the user's past through visions of connectivity. The ability lets you see the unknown past in an intricate form. The vision also provides abilities to look through the truth of the world. It also shows the lines connecting existence to the world. These abilities have further potential to connect the present and future visions as well.}
"Haha," a soft chuckle escaped my lips as my prediction became reality.
[Wait, how did you know the System screen would be shown before I could learn?]
"Because you are not a system, Grade," I replied to Grade after a short pause.
My voice gradually calmed as I settled in the chair, leaning back and facing the ceiling.
[What do you mean by that?]
I ignored Grade's question as I organized my thoughts.
According to Block Universe, your birth is out there in space-time. Your death, too, is in space-time. Every moment of your life is out there, somewhere, in space-time.
So says the block universe model of our world.
According to this theory, the universe is a giant block of everything that ever happens at any time and place. On this view, the past, present, and future all exist — and are equally authentic.
"Grade, did you watch my dream?" I questioned Grade.
[Not everything, but I could see parts of the visions.]
"Well, I was expecting that much, so what do you make out of it?"
[You had a rough life, and I feel sympathy towards you. Should I order some ice cream for you?]
"Shut the fuck up and share your real thoughts with me." I retorted angrily as I tried to punch him, only to pass through.
[I could only see some visions from Nexus Entity, not everything. My thoughts aren't going to give you a better perspective. What are your thoughts though?]
"Fair enough, my thoughts are much more apparent after organizing each vision and the history of this world. For instance, the demonic race, which was thought of as a peaceful race, didn't appear out of nowhere. The demonic invasion started from the Nexus Entity.
Andreas, Kyro, and the researchers survived with their frantic plan. Although their bodies perished, their souls remained, and these souls combined with the highest species of monsters on Demon planet. Since the intelligence of these monsters was low, even though they were the most powerful of them all, their combined consciousness gave birth to a new species of demons, the twisted mind and inhumane experience of a human, and the instincts of a monster; that's what demons are."
[Third person POV]
Kaizer calmly stood up and continued sharing his thoughts with Grade, frantically pacing the room as he continued his words.
"The demonic race started the war of conquest some 400 years ago. That is what we learned from the other races. The races that interacted with humans mentioned that demons emerged out of nowhere; their intelligence level surpassed what they could explore then, but that was far from the truth.
It was because they had superior technology, which was far ahead of the time. Nexus entity didn't only perform inhumane experiments. It was a combination of everything.
When the veil was lifted three hundred years ago, it was because Andreas and his crew tried invading with their superior tech of 2023 Earth, but they lost for some reason.
They were the cause of launching the war of conquest with their tech but soon realized that their technology could not beat their instinctual powers, and thus, they secluded themselves to control that demonic power.
If I combine my knowledge of the novel, that is what I make out of it. Fuck, Fuck, Fuck, it's all connected. Everything was connected. Why didn't I realize it sooner? They didn't appear out of nowhere; the demonic invasion started from Nexus Entity." Kaizer's body trembled as he realized the absolute truth.
He trembled more as his thoughts raced. The vivid scenes and the traumatic visions further increased the burden on his poor mentality and physique.
He held his forehead with his hand as his hair covered his entire face.
[Kaizer, you need to calm down and not panic. Relax your mind, there's nothing to fear anymore-]
"Hahahaha…Hahaha…Hahahaha…Haha…Hahahaha…Ha"
Before Grade could continue his words, a fit of laughter interjected his words.
[…]
Grade's ethereal figure froze in fear as he was left bewildered by the source of the laughter.
His figure trembled as he looked at the wicked smile of madness etched on Kaizer's face as his laughter filled the room.
Kaizer's trembling shoulders stopped gradually as his laughter faded.
After calming down, Kaizer's face adorned a bright smile, sending shivers to Grade's ethereal flame.
"Hey, Grade, I thought not being able to live my life to the fullest would always be the biggest regret in my life. I realized I was completely wrong. Call me a madman, but the biggest regret in my life was not being able to kill Andreas and his crew with my own hands. But alas, I guess destiny is a twisted bitch. They are serving me my prey on a silver platter. This is the best it will ever get, I think.
Am I petty for thinking about revenge?
Damn right, I am being petty. I will be the most insignificant person if I can kill them all with my own hands.
Grade, you know what, fuck the plot, I will be controlling everything. Our goals are to rescue my mother and then annihilate the demonic race." Kaizer announced as he swiftly picked up the scattered books.
Meanwhile, Grade stayed frozen after witnessing the plethora of emotions that Kaizer showcased.
After a moment, Grade broke the silence as he questioned.
[So, what's the plan? Because I don't think you will share why you believe I am not a system.]
Grade questioned in a sarcastic tone as he rushed towards Kaizer.
"We are leaving because staying in this library is no longer beneficial. I have already read many books and am proficient with the different software we came across. It's good that the programming language didn't change completely, or I might have had to stay here longer." Kaizer replied telepathically as he quietly opened the door and headed toward the main exit.
[Alright, Kaizer.]
"Besides, I need to increase my rank to protect my sanity more than myself. I might act impulsively and do irrational stuff because the visions might affect my current thought process."
[It's Alright, Kaizer. I can understand your inner turmoil, or more as I can feel it?]
"I know you can feel it because you are not a system but a soul. That is all I can share with you for now. By the way, I trained for a week in the library and ate a strict diet. Although I haven't had proper rest, I don't see any major changes other than feeling that my body is somewhat stable compared to when I woke and felt I would wither away."
[Well, no shit Sherlock, do you want to have 6-pack abs in a week's training and get to S rank in a flash.]
******