"I'm a little busy, could you come back tomorrow?" Sena's voice sounded fragile, yet her eyes gazed at Julian with a deep, confident power.
He noticed her expression as he passed behind Sena. Her brow was furrowed in pain, but she clenched her jaws together to bite down and remain silent.
"Practise with me tomorrow, as for your question… give me a little time."
Julian wasn't foolish, despite losing his memories. After spending time beside Sena, his emotions slowly bubbled back to him. He increasingly felt drawn to her, yet until now, he dismissed it.
Perhaps this would've been different if he hadn't seen that strange flashback with the red-haired woman in his memory.
'That wasn't from my last life, was it…' He feared continuing his thoughts and stepped out of the training room, suddenly embracing the humid heat from the afternoon sun and the chirping of insects echoed in the distance.
"It's fine if you need some more time, I'll wait for an answer."
Sena let out a sigh and pulled her hand back down to the handle of the door, watching his figure slowly fade into the distance.
Julian's mood became strange.
The fleeting excitement of Sena's kiss and request faded because of his confusing memory. He could still smell the scent of roses and the sensation of her lips almost replacing Sena's.
'I am an asshole…'
He understood the amount of effort it took Sena to ask that, to approach him, but the moment she returned from the shower, her gaze was resolved and refused him. "She needs time, but we don't have much of that left."
With their bodies already completely synergizing with the game, that meant something changed with this life. 'Maybe my third life caused damage, is this the butterfly effect?'
Julian shook his head, increasing his pace from the steaming pavement, and busy roads filled with beeping horns.
"I need to keep focused."
He noticed the improvement in his physical fitness was drastic, and many passing women gazed back at him and whispered about his looks whilst he passed by.
'The charm stat affects the real world as well, it seems.'
With a deep breath, he blocked out the noise, slowly building up his pace before jogging towards the local park. Because he needed to kill time before entering Avalon again. He gazed at his watch and nodded.
"Four o'clock, I should work on my speed and fitness, until later tonight."
The reason he checked the time was that he discovered a system that allowed him to return to the hellish landscape.
A text message appeared on his phone at the exact time he unlocked Mana Control and his other abilities in the real world.
[◊ The goddess has reduced your limitations! ◊]
• While alone, you can now enter the hellish world once per day, while registered in the Dreamworld with Kang Sena.
• Should you die during this visit, you will lose 20% of your experience and be locked out of this bonus entry for 24 hours.
• Can only enter after 8 PM
Julian's feet pounded against the paved path, each step quickening as he wove through the late-afternoon crowd at the park. His breathing was controlled and steady. He didn't slow down, sweat rolling down his temple as the humid air clung to his skin. No, he couldn't.
An increase in attributes this early in both Avalon and real life meant everything. He had improved, sure, but it wasn't enough.
A notification blinked in his vision.
[◇ Your Attack has increased! ◇]
[◇ Your Speed has increased! ◇]
Julian exhaled sharply. The system really was bleeding into reality. His heart pounded, not from exhaustion—but exhilaration.
'So even improving my stats works early, too.'
His fingers curled as a grin flickered across his lips. If the game's logic worked outside the game, then he wouldn't just rely on his Magic. He would sharpen everything, strength, speed, endurance.
When he passed a group of joggers, Julian caught a glimpse of his reflection in a glass bus stop. His reflection had changed a lot—more muscle, a sharper jawline. Now, the glances from passing women made sense.
But he ignored it.
He only had one thing in mind: get stronger.
Tonight, he would test the limits of his power once again in Avalon.
Not long after, Julian arrived at the park's outdoor training area. He stretched his arms while enjoying the mid-evening breeze, cooling him down. Julian liked the lingering heat and faint rustling of the leaves mixing with the distant hum of traffic.
Julian exhaled and rolled his shoulders before stepping onto the soft pavement, his body still sore from training with Sena.
Suddenly, something appeared in the corner of his eye.
Under the low-hanging branches of a Japanese willow, a woman danced.
Her rose-coloured hair shone beneath the dim sunlight, each step flowing into the next like a ripple across the water. Initially, nothing more than a delicate performance—each motion fluid, effortless and flowing. But Julian noticed the true purpose of her dance, the subtle shifts, the way her steps were both deliberate and graceful.
An elegant turn. A sharp pivot, and the weep of her arm like a striking blade.
His fingers twitched at the sight.
This wasn't just a dance.
He breathed slowly while observing.
The way she moved was mesmerising, somewhere between combat and choreography, like a warrior disguised their skill with beauty.
Something about it felt familiar, like the scent of roses, a whisper of warmth, a name that couldn't be remembered.
Then she turned and their eyes met.
Julian stopped breathing.
Vibrant Green.
A sense of déjà vu ran through him. For a brief moment, the world narrowed, the air between them charged with an unspoken recognition.
"Hey, handsome, do you always stare like that?" Her voice was smooth, carrying the trace of a smirk.
Julian exhaled slowly, a gentle smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "It's hard not to, when I see something this beautiful."
The words left his lips naturally, without thought or hesitation. The woman blinked and looked surprised, before her lips curled into a grin, and she winked back at him.
Julian shook his head slightly, as if he were breaking himself out of a trance.
"Anyway, don't let me interrupt."
With that, he turned away and returned to training.
His body moved automatically, each strike and motion sharpening his focus. When the wind blew, he could feel the weight of her gaze.
No longer after he finished working out, Julian wiped his brow, sweat dripping down his cheeks. He glanced back at the willow, but the red woman had already left. Julian touched his nose, before brushing his silver hair back and left the training area.
"She was quite interesting."
With nothing else to do, he started heading home, humming to himself as the last traces of her presence faded into the evening air.