You don't get what you deserve,you get what you negotiate.
...
"You seem confident,"
the woman remarked, her voice cool and calculating,
"but I like that. I've seen that kind of confidence crumble before me."
Her words were sharp, pointed directly at Lynn.
A thought occurred to me
why wasn't Lynn saying anything in response?
She was clearly targeting him, striking where it hurt most, yet he remained silent.
I couldn't hold back any longer. I needed to understand what he was thinking.
"Hey, Lynn "
I asked, my tone gentle but insistent.
"why did you think I wasn't capable of fulfilling your wish?
Was it just because you assumed I'm not qualified since I don't have some magic trick up my sleeve?"
Lynn smiled casually, but there was something hollow in it like he was carrying the weight of an unspoken truth.
"I've done some bad things on my second round"
he said, his tone surprisingly nonchalant.
"It was necessary, but even before I could solve it properly, I..... I died."
He paused, eyes distant for a moment, then continued with a touch of grim pride.
"Not to brag, but I was strong. Strong enough to handle a lot.
But the last time, what happened... was a little unexpected"
His gaze met mine again, more serious now, and the gravity of his words weighed down on me.
"Right now, even if I were to send you to my world, I can't guarantee you'd be safe.
You might end up suffering a worse death than the one you just experienced,because of my actions."
He sighed, his expression softening with a kind of regret that seemed too heavy for him to carry alone.
"Heaven's door would shut on my face if I sent someone normal and innocent like you to clean up my mess."
"I will never do something bad to anyone"
Lynn said, his voice steady,
"most importantly when that someone is connected to me in some way."
His words hit me harder than I expected.
It was as if I could hear his thoughts clearly,his deep sense of responsibility, the weight of his guilt.
At that moment, I felt an undeniable sense of similarity between us.
If I were in his shoes, I would have done the same thing.
I understood his hesitation, his desire to protect someone who is totally unfit by his point of view from the aftermath of his own mistakes.
Lynn's expression was resolute, his voice firm as he continued, his decision already made.
"It's better for me to drift off alone
instead of dragging you into my mess, so you could suffer in my place.
That's why I wanted someone superior to me to handle it."
"I'm sorry" he added softly
"but you're not capable of it."
I smiled back at Lynn, a genuine smile this time, as his words sank in.
It was oddly comforting to hear someone care about me, even after death, in this strange surreal situation.
But then, a bitter thought crept in the back of my mind,
I was pretty sure my death wouldn't even make it to the hospital noticeboard.
By now, they'd probably replaced me with a new recruit, and by the end of tomorrow, I'd be just another forgotten name.
But there was no use dwelling on that.
No one was waiting for me back home anyway.
It wasn't like there was anyone to mourn or even notice my absence.
In a strange way, it felt like there was someone who understood, someone who was concerned.
"Hey," I said, breaking the silence.
"I don't know how much time has passed since we met, but let me ask you something."
Lynn looked at me, his expression shifting as if he wasn't quite sure where this was going.
"What's my name?"
Lynn's face froze for a second, and I could almost see the surprise flicker in his eyes.
"You haven't even asked my name, even after talking so much?"
"You've told me everything about yourself, but you didn't even ask me my name."
"Listen to me, just this once, Lynn,"
I said, my voice firm.
"We're complete strangers."
I paused, letting the words settle between us, before continuing.
"You don't know what I'm good at or what I'm the worst at.
So don't assess my worth based on your own thoughts and experiences.
I may be normal by the standards you were expecting, but what I can do and what I can't is something I decide for myself after I try."
"So, just tell me this: If I were someone who had the qualities you were expecting.
What would your wish be?"
I stepped closer, my voice unwavering.
"Even if you place someone strong in your position instead of me, their strength alone won't ensure success.
it's about knowing what needs to be done"
"So just say it to my face, right now."
Lynn stood there, his face blank for a moment, as though wrestling with his thoughts.
"My wish huh.
i have to say, you truly have a talent for stirring people up"
Lynn spoke in a quiet, measured tone, each word deliberate and cutting, as though carefully selecting them from a place deep within.
I expected a raw reaction from him,
But then, his restraint slowly snapped.
"I want to know if I was truly cursed or not!"
His words were calm but sharp.
"I need to know if I was truly unfortunate to have everything taken from me."
The intensity in his gaze was overwhelming, the weight of years of suffering and confusion breaking through.
"I want to know the cause of my pain
and rip it into pieces with my own hands!"
His fists clenched, the anger building with every word, as if he were preparing for battle with unseen enemies.
"And destroy that goddamn plotting world,"
Lynn spat, his words laced with venom,
"a world made only to make people like me suffer, just to make fun of our pain!"
For a moment, the air between us felt thick with his sheer force of frustration.
"If there's anyone standing in my way,
whether it's the gods, the chosen ones, or some damned... exiled beings"
Lynn's eyes locked onto mine, his expression hard and unwavering.
"Just… just make sure to teach them how it feels to be on the receiving end."
After hearing his outburst, I kinda
momentarily froze.
The weight of his words hit me like a wave, and for a moment, I wasn't sure how to respond.
His pain was so tangible, and yet his resolve was unshakable.
Lynn's gaze never wavered.
He looked at me with that same intensity, his eyes searching for something in mine, something he needed from me ,maybe just a sign that I understood, that I was listening.
"There it is,the help I want from you"
he said, his voice steady despite the turmoil behind it.
But the real question is… can you fulfill it for me?"
He stepped forward slightly, the frustration evident in the way his muscles tensed.
The challenge in his words was clear, but there was also a quiet vulnerability beneath it all, a plea for something more than just action.
"I've tried twice, but I couldn't do shit"
"Someone or the world itself, is constantly changing and countering my actions as if it knows me inside out."
He shook his head, as though the very thought of it was maddening.
"That's the reason I wanted to change it desperately "
he said, his voice growing tighter.
"My fate. It's just unfair.
Everyone has the right to live, not just the chosen ones. If that's the world's will, then why create rational people like us, only to make our lives miserable... to laugh at our pain?"
His words echoed in the silence, each one hitting like a punch to the gut.
I could hear the depth of his frustration, the weight of his struggle, and for the first time, I realized how much he had been carrying.
"It's just... frustrating"
he murmured, as if saying the word out loud somehow made it more real.
"If there was a way to go back,"
Lynn said, his voice low but fierce.
"I would still take it. I would fight them all, even if losing my existence itself is the price."
He paused, his gaze hardening with an unyielding conviction.
"I will make sure they remember me as someone who they failed to manipulate till the end."
I just stood there, listening to his every word.
It's hard to keep moving when everything you do gets blocked or when the results always seem to go in the opposite direction, leaving you in a constant state of uncertainty.
I couldn't push Lynn any further, not when I was already at my breaking point.
The person standing in front of me was someone who had given up long ago, someone who no longer believed in the possibility of change.
Even if this was just another fantasy novel scenario, where the protagonists triumph over the villain's downfall, it didn't feel like that.
It didn't feel like anything was going to turn out the way it was supposed to.
Just like he asked me,
"Can I really do this?"
I wanted to tell him "yes,"
I wanted to give him that hope, but the truth was, I wasn't sure I could even say it to myself.
It was easy to reassure someone that their problems would be solved gradually, to offer that comforting, familiar promise.
The sight of hope in their eyes gave us, as physicians, just enough time to try and fail, to use trial and error until we found a solution ,until we figured out what might work.
But in this case, I couldn't even rely on that method.
The person standing before me had lived through death twice, and now, he was walking toward something I couldn't even begin to comprehend.
If there was something I could do...
My mind raced, trying to latch onto any idea that might give him a chance, an option.
Something that might shift his mindset, make him reconsider his path, or at least offer him a sliver of hope.
But before I could form the words, before I could even voice the question in my head, Lynn surprised me with something I hadn't expected.
"You don't have to think that hard. I don't have enough time left."
I froze, confused, my thoughts scattering. Not enough time?
"What exactly do you mean, Lynn?"
His eyes, weary and distant, met mine. And then he spoke again, with a weight that made my chest tighten.
"There's another reason I can't go back. I already sold off my soul for the second round."
He paused, his words hanging in the air like a dark omen.
"That's one of the reasons why I can't go back anymore."
I felt a chill run through me, as the gravity of his statement settled over us both.
"Sold off your soul?"
I repeated, my voice trembling slightly.
It sounded like something ripped from the pages of a horror story, the kind of thing you hear whispered around campfires or see in the darkest corners of a movie theater.
But this wasn't a movie.
Speaking of horror...
"Who was it, Lynn?" I asked, a sense of dread creeping up my spine.
"Who is the buyer?"
Lynn just smiled, that same cryptic smile I have seen numerous times now.
With a casual flick of his hand, he waved it in a rhythmic fashion towards the woman standing nearby, the one who had an air about her that made my skin crawl.
I followed the motion of his hand, and there she was. Her whole presence felt cold and unblinking, locked onto me.
She didn't hide her dissatisfaction with my conversation with Lynn.
In fact, it was more than that she was impatient.
Her posture, her stare, everything about her screamed that she was done with the pleasantries.
But that wasn't my problem.
If there was one thing I could do,
it was to make her a little more uncomfortable.
Maybe even get under her skin,
just a bit. Even if I was out of my depth , I could at least do that.
If there was one thing I could do, it was to make this woman ,this killer piss off a little.
Maybe I couldn't save Lynn, maybe I couldn't undo what had already been done, but I could make sure she knew I wasn't going to cower in silence.
She had that cold frown on her lips, like she'd seen death far too many times to care about anyone else's life.
But I wasn't about to let her take this moment without a fight, even if it was just a small one.
I shifted my stance, meeting her gaze head-on, unflinching.
I could feel the tension thick in the air, like we were two predators circling,
and I wasn't going to back down first.
A slight smirk tugged at my lips, a small rebellion against the fear clawing at my insides.
The horror lady watched my every move, her gaze unwavering, as though she could erase me with a blink if she so desired.
I cleared my mind and debated whether to move forward or just stay here and perish
If I push forward i might get entangled with lynn's misfortunes and may become part of something that is even worse than its already is.
On the other hand if I stay here,
I will just be a presence waiting get perished without any importance.
My story was over.
It was over before it even had a chance to unfold, before it could develop into anything meaningful.
The unfair part?
It was ended by force, snuffed out before it had a chance to breathe and this woman is responsible for that.
I wasn't planning on drifting off until I saw through her, until I could unravel the layers beneath that icy exterior.
Her words still haunted my ears: "Pathetic as well."
The words I despised more than anything else.
But they weren't just aimed at me.
No, she wasn't implying just me.
I glanced at Lynn, who was observing me intently, his expression unreadable.
I may be pathetic in her eyes, but I'm no fool. And this woman... she's going to learn that.
there's a saying
"A woman in mystery is worth a curiosity trip."
And though she may hide behind her enigma, there's something about her that draws me in, something I can't quite shake.
Perhaps it's time to take that trip,even if it's a short one.