When he opened his eyes again, he felt strange—disconnected. He glanced down and saw his own body lying on the ground. His hands, rough and worn, were not his own. The realization struck him hard: he was now in the body of the hot dog vendor.
His breathing was heavy, almost frantic. "Just like yesterday," Akondo thought. "I'm in someone else's body again… How is this even possible?"
He knelt down, reaching out hesitantly toward his real body. Holding his borrowed hand under his own nose, he felt the faint warmth of breath. His body was still alive.
The crowd around them began murmuring, concerned faces trying to make sense of the situation. Akondo, in the hot dog vendor's skin, tried to piece it all together. "The same thing… Heart pain, that hologram telling me to 'swap body'… This is exactly what happened with Mom. But how can any of this be real?"
People were getting closer, forming a tight circle around his real body. He felt their eyes, their curiosity turning into anxiety. Akondo needed to think quickly.
"What would the hot dog guy do in a situation like this?" he asked himself, feeling the urgency mount. He forced himself to take a deep breath, steady his voice, and called out, "Somebody call an ambulance! Please, call an ambulance!".
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In a black luxury car, Ren sat staring out the window. The road was bustling with people, and as he watched them pass by, his eyes glowed with a golden hue. He could see their souls.
"The moment I realized I had supernatural powers yesterday, I thought it was pretty cool," he mused. "But now it feels useless. All I see is people's energy, and based on what I've figured out, it seems like I can tell who's lying and understand people's emotions when I focus this power on them."
He frowned and thought to himself, "But it doesn't even feel real. Even if it is real, what use is it? At least I know I've got something no one else has."
He shifted his gaze from the window to his right. Sitting there was a woman with long, dark hair, dressed in a lavish black gown and gloves, wearing glasses.
"What are you thinking about?" she asked.
"Nothing, Mom. Just some useless stuff," Ren replied.
"I still don't understand why you chose to study abroad," she said. "I don't feel good about it."
"If I study in my country , I won't be treated like a normal student," Ren explained. "I want to be treated like everyone else. I would've left earlier, but the country's man-made royal family rules never allowed me to. Now I'm eighteen, and I couldn't wait any longer."
"Queen Maxima, we're entering the forest area," the driver announced. "Please don't be alarmed."
Ren glanced out the window, noticing that they'd left the city behind and were now driving along a road surrounded by trees.
"Spooky," Queen Maxima muttered.
" Maxima , if I may, I did recommend having an escort accompany the car," said a man in a black coat seated beside the driver.
"I wanted to," Maxima responded, "but Ren insisted we avoid any unnecessary fuss."
"Don't worry, Mom. Uncle Marou is with us. There's nothing to fear," Ren said, addressing the man by the driver.
"You can trust me," Marou assured her. "I'd give my life to protect you."
"I know, I know," Maxima replied, her voice steady.
Ren turned to look at Marou, and his eyes widened in surprise. Marou's soul glowed red.
"What the… Why is his soul red? Did he lie about something?" Ren thought to himself, but before he could dwell on it, Marou stood up suddenly, pulling two guns from his coat. He aimed one at the driver's head and the other at Ren and Maxima.
Ren and Maxima stared at him in shock.
"Stop the car now, or I'll shoot," Marou demanded.
"What?" the driver stammered, bewildered.
"I'm not joking around. Stop the car!" Marou barked.
"What are you doing, Marou?" Maxima screamed.
"You want to know, my lovely sister?" Marou sneered, and fired two shots into Ren's chest.
Maxima screamed, clutching Ren, and the third bullet struck her arm.
"Ah… I didn't intend to hurt you, dear sister," Marou said coldly, "but you're interfering now."
The car screeched to a halt.
"Ren! My baby!" Maxima sobbed, holding Ren as his chest bled and his eyes closed.
"Ren!" she screamed in terror.
"He's probably dead," Marou said nonchalantly. "Now, look at me, sister."
"Why… you bastard!" Maxima cried, attempting to lunge at him, but Marou fired another shot, hitting her hand. She recoiled, gripping her arm in agony.
"Listen, sister," Marou said, his voice chillingly calm. "By now, King Rainer—I mean, your husband—should be dead. If everything went as planned, he's already been taken care of."
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Inside the grand halls of Valloria's Palace, a man dressed in black lay on the polished marble floor, bleeding from his wounds. Surrounding him were several guards in dark coats, all alert and watchful. Standing close by was King Rainer, his golden hair and beard catching the dim palace light. His royal attire spoke of his authority, but his golden eyes revealed an intensity fueled by desperation.
"By now, maybe.. the queen is dead, and Marou will soon finish the job," the wounded man gasped, struggling to speak.
King Rainer's expression hardened. "Tell me, why did you want to kill me?" he demanded.
The man in black looked away, unable to meet the king's gaze. "I was sent from Eraland. The president… he ordered us to kill you and your family. I—I'm sorry," he stammered.
"Why?" the king asked, his voice cold.
"They… they were furious because you supported Peraland. You openly condemned their actions in the genocide against Piraland, and now, with your backing, Piraland is winning this war. Eraland sees you as the reason for their downfall," the man confessed, each word heavy with dread.
King Rainer turned to his guards. "Take him to the Black Chamber," he commanded, his voice steady, but his eyes dark with resolve.
Two suited guards stepped forward, gripping the man under his arms and dragging him from the room without another word.
The king clenched his fists, his thoughts racing. *Maxima, Ren…* He turned urgently to one of his aides standing nearby. "Contact the president of Antherion. Tell him it's an emergency. I need them informed about Maxima and Ren immediately," he ordered, his tone sharp with urgency.
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In the car, Marou's voice dripped with arrogance as he spoke. "And after that, I'll be the new king of the land. I'll support Eriland, and soon, they'll take over Valloria."
"You can't do this!" Maxima cried, her voice shaking with disbelief. "How could you betray me like this, Marou? You can't do this to your sister!"
"I can, and I will," Marou replied coldly, his eyes glinting with malice. "You'll be a pain if you're alive, so I'll have to kill you as well."
The driver, sensing the escalating danger, instinctively pushed Marou. But in a split second, Marou retaliated, shooting the driver in the head, the echo of the gunshot filling the confined space. Maxima screamed, her heart racing as she realized the gravity of the situation.
"Now it's your turn, sister," Marou sneered, raising his gun to her. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a bullet struck his hand, causing the gun to clatter to the floor.
Marou turned in shock to see Ren standing there, a golden revolver gripped tightly in his hands.
"Ren!" Maxima exclaimed, a mix of relief and horror flooding her expression.
Ren, bleeding from his chest, stood defiantly. "Not that easy, you son of a—" He hesitated, glancing at his mother. "No, not 'son of a bitch.' You're the bitch here," he corrected himself, firing at Marou's leg, then the other.
Marou cried out in pain, collapsing into a chair, his body wracked with agony. Seizing the moment, Ren struck Marou's head with the revolver's hard edge, rendering him unconscious.
Maxima rushed to Ren, tears streaming down her cheeks as she hugged him tightly. "You're alive! You're alive, Ren!" she cried, relief washing over her.
"Don't worry, Mom," Ren replied, his voice steady despite the pain. "But you're bleeding. We need to get you to a hospital quickly."
As they embraced, Ren's mind raced. "I knew Uncle Marou was dangerous when I saw his soul was red. I had to act fast. He shot me, but I survived—thankfully, the bullet only grazed me. My gun was hidden under the seat, and my act worked better than I hoped. But how did I even survive?"
Suddenly, Ren's phone buzzed, breaking through the tension. He glanced at the screen, uncertainty creeping in as he wondered who could be calling now.
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The hot dog vendor sat in a hospital corridor, anxiety etched on his face as a nurse approached him. "Are you with the patient?"
"What should I say?" Akondo thought, realizing his soul was still trapped in the hot dog vendor's body.
"Sir, we need to know," the nurse insisted.
"Um... yeah, he came to my stall to buy a hot dog, then he fell to the ground," Akondo replied, maintaining the vendor's persona.
"You don't know him personally?" the nurse asked, her brow furrowing.
"No," he answered.
"Hmm, okay. What's your name?" the nurse inquired.
"Me?" he said, panic rising. "What is the owner of the body's name? I don't know that."
Just then, his phone rang from the vendor's pocket.
"Excuse me," he said, pulling out the phone. The screen displayed the name "Aresa."
"Who is this?" he thought, glancing at the nurse who was still waiting.
"Whatever it is, I should pick up," he decided, answering the call. A voice came through the receiver. "Denso, where are you? It's already twelve. Won't you come home?"
"Oh, so the hot dog vendor's name is Denso," he realized, then replied, "Who are you?"
"What? Who am I? I'm your wife. Wait, are you with another girl and pretending you don't know me?" the voice on the other end sounded upset.
"What should I say?" he thought, scrambling for a response. "I'm in the hospital. A kid came to buy a hot dog and fell ill, so I brought him here."
"Great answer," he thought, feeling a rush of relief.
"Why are you there? Come home. Don't spend money on random people," the woman insisted.
"I'm hanging up now," he said, cutting the call abruptly.
He turned to the nurse and said, "My name is Denso."
"Okay, we have news that the boy isn't waking up. We've given him saline. Can you pay for that? This is an expensive hospital, and I doubt you can afford it," the nurse replied.
"What's the cost? Is it hospital policy to ask for money like this?" he asked, his irritation rising.
"No, but sometimes people leave without paying after getting treatment. We only ask those who look poor, like you," she stated bluntly.
"That's disrespectful," he thought.
"The cost is about 43 dollars or 6,554 Kuma," the nurse added.
"That's expensive," he mused, checking his money bag and finding 7,000 Kuma.
He calculated quickly and handed over the money.
"Ah, they are really overcharging people. I should have taken my body to a different hospital," he thought, frustration bubbling beneath the surface.
After a while, Akondo walking outside the hospital , on the hospital ground, still in the hot dog vendor's body, gazing up at the night sky. "Based on my calculations, I guess I have the power to swap bodies, but how will I get back to mine?"
He examined his arm and thought, "Wait a second. If I return to my body, what happens to this one? Does the original owner come back?"
His eyes widened, and he began to breathe heavily. "What if the original owner dies? If that happens, then... my mom... she died because of this power."
Though it seemed like a theory to him, a sense of dread began to take hold.
"Then I'm the killer of my mom," he thought, feeling his head spin.
"No... no, it can't be real. But... I'm responsible for this. I'm sure," Akondo thought, his mind racing as he forgot that his legs were still walking.
He began moving toward the road, lost in thoughts.
Suddenly, an ambulance and several police cars rushed into the hospitals gate and stopped.
Akondo, still in the vendor's body, continued walking. Everything around him felt like nothing to him as his thoughts were blaming him
From the ambulance, Ren emerged, his chest bandaged but otherwise walking normally. Hospital staff and police were carrying Maxima's body, along with the bodies of the driver and Marou.
A police officer approached Ren, saying, "That was a heroic act. You've proven you're not an ordinary person; you're a prince."
Ren suddenly sensed something from the road and turned to see Akondo in the vendor's body, unknowingly heading toward the busy road.
He looked deeper into the soul of the body and saw a dark void within it.
"Stop!" Ren shouted, racing toward the hot dog vendor.
Akondo's soul was trapped inside, consumed by guilt over his mother's death, tears streaming down the vendor's cheeks. He was oblivious to the impending danger as he wandered closer to the busy road.
Just then, a speeding truck struck the vendor's body, sending it flying.
The truck screeched to a halt.
The road was bustling even at night, with cars coming to an abrupt stop as people rushed to the scene.
Ren reached the spot where the body lay, closely followed by several police officers.
As he looked down, he saw the black soul within the body morphing into a dark orb that only he could see. The orb detached from the vendor's body and shot off toward the hospital at supersonic speed.
Ren could only watch in shock as the black orb flew toward the room where Akondo's real body lay and entered it.
Within a second, Akondo's eyes shot open, finding himself back in his own hospital bed, a saline drip attached to his arm.