"Alright, to start off, I'm going to ask about your name. Tell me your name..."
"Alright, Mr. Anderson," Ray replied to Anderson's command with a sincere smile.
"My name is Ray Lewinston, the eldest child of the Lewinston family. People around me usually call me Ray.
Is my explanation clear to you?"
"Yeah, I understand, Ray. Good kid... Good kid..." Anderson said, while gently patting Ray's head.
Ray felt happy about that and felt at ease. However, some parts of Ray's mind still felt tormented by the situation. Ray's sanity was gradually drained by the clash of conflicting emotions. He felt nauseous and wanted to vomit, but his physical body was not under his full control. Ray's control over his own body was limited to just wiggling his fingers.
"My next question is, are you part of the heroes?"
Just say no! Answer no, my dear self!
"Um, I'm not sure, but the princess did say that we are heroes."
Forget it, I give up. There's no hope for me from the beginning...
Ray felt foolish for expecting a miracle in a situation like this.
Anderson seemed to be deep in thought as he looked at Ray.
"Are you really a hero? You're not lying, right?" Anderson asked, leaning his face closer to Ray's.
"I would never lie to you, sir," Ray replied, smiling at Anderson.
Suddenly, Anderson swiftly reached for Ray's neck with his right hand. He began squeezing Ray's neck while piercing it with his long nails. Blood gushed out from the holes caused by Anderson's nails scratching Ray's neck.
Ray winced in pain, his face filled with suffering.
"Why?" Ray asked, confused.
"You lied to me, you can't possibly be a hero."
"No... You're mistaken, Mr. Anderson. I really was summoned along with my other friends from another world."
Anderson lifted Ray with both hands, choking his neck. Ray struggled to breathe and his body grew weak.
"You say I'm wrong? You say a perfect human like me has made a mistake? Where did I go wrong?
I never make mistakes, I was born in this world to be someone perfect! It's impossible for someone who is perfect to ever make a mistake!"
"But... Sir..."
"You lied to me, you can't possibly be a hero. Since the moment I met you, I've been confused about your existence.
What are you doing here? Why are you here? What is your purpose here? Who wants your presence to stand before me right now?
From the beginning, I didn't see any signs of you being blessed by the gods. You were not blessed by any god. And you claim to be a hero?
Even in the prophecy made by that woman, there is no mention of your existence. Even in "that person" prophecy, there is no mention of your existence. There is no one named Ray Lewinston who should be here. You shouldn't have been sent to this world.
And after all those explanations, why is a human named Ray Lewinston standing in front of me right now?
Who are you really?"
Prophecy? God's blessing? My existence? Shouldn't be here? Who is this woman he's referring to? Who is "that person" he talking about? What did he mean all this time?
Ray was shocked by the explanation. He understood what Anderson was saying, but he didn't understand the underlying meaning. There were many other questions that confused him even more about his current situation. Unfortunately, he wasn't given a chance to think by Anderson at all.
Anderson tightened his grip, making it difficult for Ray to breathe.
Saliva and tears flowed from Ray's mouth, making him look extremely pitiful. Even Anderson, who was holding him, felt disgusted and wanted to end it quickly.
"Arrghhh... Mr. Anderson..." Ray uttered with a sorrowful face.
Just kill me quickly... This is painful, both physically and mentally...
Gradually, Ray's vision became blurry and he caught a glimpse of Anderson's lips saying, "Tch... Just a waste of my time."
It felt strange to Ray because he felt hatred towards Anderson. But behind that, he also felt sadness for having to part with Mr. Anderson who had saved him. The conflicting emotions made Ray's mind chaotic and almost caused him to lose his sanity. He didn't even know what his true feelings were at that moment.
Am I angry at him? Do I hate him? Do I respect him? Am I sad because of our separation?
I don't know... I don't know, you damn bastard... What is this?...
Ray slowly lost consciousness and his life simultaneously. His body was thrown by Anderson after successfully killing him.
Anderson slowly left Ray's lifeless body there, laughing with satisfaction.
**********
A young man named Ray is currently sitting in his school chair. But now he is bewildered as he looks around at the empty white room with some of his classmates nearby.
Tables and chairs are also present around them, but they are not currently in a classroom.
The situation around Ray looks chaotic as some people scream hysterically and cry out of confusion about what happened to them a few seconds ago.
Ray slowly looks around in confusion and suddenly something surprises him.
Ding, ding, ding, ding... Several soft and rhythmic notification sounds are heard, breaking the silence of the room. Like small bells calling for attention, the sound invites Ray's gaze towards several screens that suddenly appear in front of him.
[Congratulations, you have obtained the passive skill, low level mental endurance.]
[Congratulations, you have obtained the passive skill, low level physical endurance.]
[Congratulations, you have obtained the passive skill, low level dark magic endurance.]
[Congratulations, you have obtained the passive skill, low level mind-control endurance.]
[Congratulations, you have obtained your first title, "someone who has been through hell".]
Ray is stunned as he tries to gather his thoughts.
His body doesn't feel any pain or wounds throughout his entire body. Even when Ray touches his neck, he doesn't feel any signs of injury or the presence of blood on his neck. But despite that, the feeling of fear still lingers within him.
Ray's eye bags even darken and widen like someone who is sleepy. It's a result of excessive mental pressure he experienced before.
He ends up just sitting in his chair, silent like a lifeless statue.