The First Transmigrat

[Day 906]

Something's not right.

I can feel it in my skin. It's not just Aldric's disappearance—it's something deeper. A thread tugging at the back of my mind, just out of reach.

Today I asked around about the monocle man.

One of the survivors from the northern base. I remember his face—calm, sharp, glasses cracked, but always watching.

From what they told me, he was a minor character here. Just one of the many. Had a bit of power—nothing crazy. Enough to live better than most. Carried himself like someone used to rules and systems. Some kind of government employee in his old world, the old man said.

A bureaucrat.

A pencil pusher.

So why the hell did he point his gun at Aldric?

He was scared. I saw it on his face.

But also… something else. A twitch in his eye, a flicker of recognition. I thought I imagined it, but now—

Now I don't think so.

He looked at Aldric like he knew him.

Or feared what he might become.

I keep circling back to that moment. The trembling hand on the trigger. The sweat. The silence.

What did he see?

One thing is clear now.

Aldric—or whoever he really was—is dangerous.

Deadly, even.

I never told him my name. Not once. Think about that. From the start, I treated him like a tool. Like a powerless tagalong.

He obeyed. Let me take control. Taught me to read and speak like it was nothing.

It all fit too easily.

Too well.

He should've resisted. Pushed back. Even panicked. But no—he slipped into place like he'd been waiting to.

I remember something else.

The gold and black ring.

I stole it from him.

Still have it. Haven't taken it off since.

It hums sometimes, when the moon's high. Cold and quiet. Never responds, but never fades either.

That monocle man—how did he recognize it?

He never looked surprised when he saw it. He stared at it like a man who's seen it before.

Like he'd survived it.

And the Lumen Core.

I never showed it to Aldric.

Not once.

I got it in a cave early on—back when I didn't even know how to speak properly. There were two corpses inside. I assumed they shot each other, both clinging to the same glowing crystal.

That's when I found it.

My first real power.

The core changed everything. Let me transform. Strength. Speed. Control. That's what made me into what I am now.

But Aldric never saw it.

He never asked how I survived alone. Never questioned the sudden improvements. It's like he already knew.

But how?

Unless…

Unless he wasn't who I thought he was.

Unless he was watching me longer than I realized.

Boom.

A sound like thunder slammed through the camp.

People screamed.

Sprinted.

Then—silence.

Like someone ripped all the noise from the world in an instant.

I grabbed my upgraded spears and ran out. My instincts screamed at me. My skin went cold.

I froze.

Something was there.

Something I couldn't see, but felt.

I couldn't move. My knees locked. Every breath felt like I was inhaling ice.

Fear.

Real fear.

Not panic. Not adrenaline. Terror.

The kind that crawls under your bones and tells you—you're prey.

Then—movement.

I don't even remember turning. I just clutched my chest, drew blood with my own nails, and ran.

I didn't look back.

Didn't think about the people.

Didn't care.

I just ran.

The old man mentioned three demons before: a bear, a wolf, and a crocodile.

I don't think this was the crocodile.

It was either the bear or the wolf.

If it was the bear, then fine. That's bad.

But if it was the Lightning Wolf…

Then someone's been targeting me.

The wolf shouldn't be this far south. Its territory is massive, yes, but not here. Not now.

Unless it's not hunting randomly anymore.

Unless it's following something.

Or someone.

I need to reassess everything.

I don't trust Aldric. I don't trust the monocle man. I don't trust the story I've been told.

Someone's lying.

Someone knows more than they're saying.

And I think I've been walking into a trap since day one.