Adrian, formerly Hu Suengwoo, blinked as he took in his surroundings. The worn down castle, the tattered banners, and the lone servant standing before him. He turned to the man and asked cautiously,
"Who... are you?"
The servant's eyes widened in shock before a hint of pain crossed his face.
"My Lord, my name is Tobin," he said, his voice filled with concern.
"Surely, you haven't forgotten me?"
Realizing his mistake, Adrian quickly calmed down.
"Oh, no, no! Of course not," he said, forcing a smile. "I've just been feeling a little... off. Headache, you know?"
Tobin let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, my Lord. I was starting to worry."
"Adrian took a moment to look around. The castle was in bad shape, with crumbling walls, broken furniture, and an odd silence that showed this place had seen better days. He frowned."
"Tobin… why is our castle like this? What happened?"
Tobin hesitated before answering. "My Lord, don't you remember? We were abandoned by the Empire. They left us with nothing."
"So, basically exiled," Adrian thought, rubbing his temples.
"That doesn't matter," he said, pushing the thought away. "What's the current state of our land?"
Tobin's face grew serious. "My Lord, to be honest… it's the worst it has ever been. And since you fell unconscious, things have only gotten worse."
Adrian frowned. "How long was I unconscious?"
"Two weeks, my Lord."
Adrian's eyes widened slightly. Two weeks? That was long enough for everything to get worse.
"Thankfully, your body didn't weaken too much," Tobin continued, sounding relieved.
"The only noticeable change is that you've gotten thinner, my Lord."
Adrian barely heard him. His mind was racing.
"Two weeks unconscious… could it have been poison? Or a curse?"
It was the only explanation that made sense. If this was truly a fantasy world, then sickness wasn't the only danger.
Adrian clenched his fists.
No matter what had happened to the previous owner of this body, he was in charge now. And he wasn't going to let this castle, his new home, fall any further.