"RINAAAA!"
Han woke with a violent jolt, his body lurching upright from the bed, gasping as though he had just run for miles. Cold sweat drenched his entire body, soaking through his sleep clothes and into the sheets.
His heart hammered — a painful rhythm, panic threatening to detonate from his chest.
His hands were shaking. No — his entire body was trembling, as though the vibration had reached something at his very core.
He turned with an urgency that was almost desperate.
The bed beside him.
Rina. Sleeping peacefully. Breathing steadily.
Relief washed through him… but alongside it came something else. Something darker — the weight of a fear that had never truly gone away.
"Never again."
Han whispered into the darkness of the room. His voice was hoarse, a blend of resolve and desperation.
A promise. A vow. A mantra repeated so many times its meaning had nearly worn smooth — yet he kept his grip on those words, as though they were the only rope keeping him from falling.
-
Morning light filtered through the curtains, soft but bright. Birds sang outside — cheerful, as if oblivious to the chaos still lingering inside this room.
Rina stirred slowly, stretching with a small, endearing yawn. Her eyelids opened halfway, still half-caught in dreams.
"Good morning, Big Brother," she murmured, her voice gentle and drowsy.
"Good morning, Rina."
Han answered with a faint smile, trying to keep the tremor from his voice. Beneath his calm tone, the remnants of the nightmare still pulsed — or perhaps, of something closer to memory.
Rina sat up, rubbing her eyes. Her movements were slow and lazy before she finally looked at her brother's face properly.
"Big Brother?" Her voice was soft, but a thread of worry had crept in. "You look... frightened. What's wrong?"
Han smiled — reflexive — but something was held back behind it. Warm on the surface, yet his eyes still carried shadows that hadn't fully lifted.
"Maybe I slept with my pillow upside down, hehe."
Rina giggled — a light, innocent laugh that sounded like the morning itself.
Han's smile softened, this time a little more genuine. A faint relief settled in him — seeing Rina still the same. Still innocent. Still bright.
"You're probably right."
Rina stretched again, then her eyes lit up with an idea. "Big Brother, I kind of want to take a walk in the forest next door — the Fura Forest. I've heard it's really beautiful!"
Han paused for just a moment. Something tight moved through his chest, though he couldn't say why. A strange feeling with no name.
But then he shook his head. Probably just the remnants of last night's nightmare.
"Okay." The word came out lighter than he expected. "I'll come with you."
-
Midday — Fura Forest
Sunlight broke through the forest canopy, casting dancing patterns of light across the mossy ground. The air was crisp, carrying the scent of pine and wildflowers. Birds called back and forth to each other, while the soft murmur of a small stream drifted from somewhere in the distance.
Beautiful. Peaceful. Almost too peaceful.
Rina walked with a spring in her step, nearly skipping between roots and wildgrasses, her face alight with delight. She spotted a leafy apple tree and gave a joyful cry,
"Big Brother, look!"
She plucked a red apple — round, perfectly ripe. "Mmm… it's so fresh!"
Han smiled, watching his sister with quiet affection. The strange feeling from before was gone. There was only this — a pleasant moment with Rina.
They settled beneath a large tree. Rina bit into her apple with a satisfied crunch. Han ate his too, letting the stillness of the forest and the sounds of nature settle over him.
"Big Brother, why do you seem gloomy lately?"
Han was pulled from his thoughts. "Hm? I'm not gloomy at all. Don't make things up."
He reached over and ruffled her hair gently.
Rina smiled, leaning into the touch.
They talked — easy conversation, light laughter. A moment precious and fragile in equal measure.
Han felt calm. Nothing was wrong. Just a beautiful afternoon with his sister.
And then —
Whoosh.
A shadow.
It materialized from thin air, moving so fast his eyes barely caught its shape. Its movement was inhuman — sharp, lethal.
Han reacted before conscious thought could form. His body moved first. In an instant, a sword of ice took shape in his hand, catching sunlight along its crystalline edge.
Clang!
Sparks flew — dancing wildly through the air. The impact sent a shockwave rippling through the nearby leaves, scattering dust and shards of ice in every direction.
Rina stumbled back, eyes wide. Fear written plainly across her face.
"Big Brother! What is that?! I… I can't feel anything from inside it!"
"Stay alert, Rina!" Han's voice was sharp — the voice of a protector braced for anything.
The shadow shifted, its form becoming gradually clearer — then it forged a weapon from its own hand.
An ice blade, burning with red fire.
Exactly like Han's.
Han's eyes widened, a flash of confusion crossing his face. "Who are you?!"
No answer. Only his own reflection staring back from behind cold mist and living flame.
The fight erupted.
A deadly dance of swords. Every movement mirrored, every strike countered with perfect precision — as if the shadow read his intentions before he could act on them.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Han released a burst of fire. The sound thundered, sweeping through the air. But the shadow leapt aside with ease, as though it already knew the direction of the attack before it came.
Han set his jaw and raised his hand. A downpour of ice fell in a dense storm across the surrounding area. But the shadow simply walked through it — its movement unhurried, almost… too familiar.
The cold mist parted bit by bit, revealing a face, a body, a posture.
Identical to Han. A perfect copy. Only its eyes were… truly empty. No anger, no soul — only a void that reflected him back at himself.
"I am the guardian of time," the voice resonated — hoarse and layered, like an echo of Han's own voice. "Brought into existence by your own actions."
Han stared. "What… what do you mean?!"
The shadow didn't answer. It simply advanced, its movements now faster, more brutal.
Han found an opening — and struck with everything he had.
Slash!
His sword cut through air. But the shadow dissolved, bleeding into darkness, leaving only a thin mist behind.
"Big Brother, over there!" Rina called out, pointing to another part of the forest.
The shadow reformed in the distance. Its hand rose — a massive spinning ball of fire churning in its palm, blazing brightly among the trees.
Whoosh.
Han spread his arms. A wall of ice rose before him — thick, layered, its blue sheen reflecting the firelight.
The impact came immediately.
BOOM!
A massive explosion. The ice wall shattered in an instant — fragments flying in every direction. A wave of heat rolled over him.
A wound opened on Han's arm. Blood dripped.
"Big Brother!" Rina ran toward him, both hands glowing softly with healing magic.
"Rina, get away from here!" Han's voice was desperate.
"I won't!" Rina cried out, tears beginning to track down her cheeks.
"Rina, find Alice! You'll be safe there! Please — listen to me."
"How can I leave you behind?!" Rina sobbed, her voice breaking with fear and refusal.
Then the shadow moved. Fast. The intent to kill was unmistakable in the air.
"Rina, LOOK OUT!"
Han threw himself forward, his sword catching that lethal slash mere inches from Rina. A burst of energy exploded between them.
"RINA, RUN!"
Rina stood frozen, hesitating, her eyes filled with tears. Then, trembling, she finally turned and ran — looking back again and again — her face drained of color, filled with a grief that seemed to cut off her breath.
-
The dark aura around Han detonated — spreading like a storm breaking free of all restraint. His energy thickened, vibrating in the air, creating a pressure that was almost suffocating.
His power surged.
The fight resumed, faster, more savage. But the shadow… adapted. Every attack Han made was now answered with perfect precision.
Han struck from behind — the shadow had already moved before his blade could fall.
Han summoned a fire blast — the shadow raised a shield of ice on pure reflex, a flawless defense that could not be broken through.
Then the shadow attacked in turn.
Spears of ice launched from every direction, tearing through the air with a sharp, piercing sound. Han threw up an ice wall — but some punched through.
His arm. His leg. Blood scattered, staining the forest floor that had been peaceful moments before.
The shadow vanished for an instant, then reappeared directly behind him.
One swing. Fast. Without mercy.
Slash.
Burning pain ripped across Han's back. His breath caught, his body lurching before he fell to one knee — blood flowing between his fingers, soaking into the cold earth beneath him.
The shadow advanced with unhurried steps, its sword raised high. Its movement was too calm — as though it already knew the end was near.
"What are you… really…" Han rasped, his voice rough between labored breaths.
The sword lifted higher —
Then froze.
In an instant, ice spread from the tip of the blade across the shadow's entire body. Its movement stopped completely — locked in place, suspended in a lethal pose.
"Big Brother!"
The voice shattered the silence. Rina came running from between the trees, her face wet with tears. "I couldn't… I couldn't leave you!"
Her small hands glowed, healing magic flowing gently into Han's wounds.
"Rina…" Han gritted his teeth against the pain. "We leave… now!"
They ran — footsteps urgent between roots and fallen leaves.
Behind them, a cracking sound. The ice around the shadow began to heat — blazing from within with red fire.
Within seconds — crack — the ice shattered. The shadow broke free, its eyes burning dark.
The attack came again — ice spears launched in rapid succession, splitting the air with a sharp, deadly hiss.
Han spun, deflecting them one by one, his breath heavy, his focus absolute.
But —
Thunk.
A shard of ice drove into Rina's body. Punching through her abdomen. A fatal wound.
She fell. Blood welled at the corner of her lips.
"RINAAAA!"
Time slowed. The world narrowed to nothing but her.
Han caught his sister's body before it could hit the ground, pulling her into his arms — desperate, shaking.
"Rina, hold on! Please…"
Rina's eyes were beginning to dim. Life was slowly fading from her gaze.
"Rina... forgive me…" Han whispered, his voice shattering.
Rina smiled weakly, barely audible. "Big Brother... don't blame yourself…"
Blood bubbled at her lips. "I'm glad... we got to go on adventures together... hehe…"
She coughed blood, her breathing growing heavier. "Please... protect everyone... like you always do... like you've always done…"
Her voice was fading — barely a breath now. "I know... you can do it…"
"RINAAAA!!"
Her body went limp in Han's arms. Her eyes slowly closed.
And silence took the rest of the world.
-
Han held the body of his sister who no longer breathed.
Blood soaked into his hands — warm, then slowly cold.
Tears fell without end.
One. Two. Without stopping.
Then —
A flash.
Han's head pounded. The world shook.
Memories struck — in a torrent, brutal, relentless.
Rina, pierced.
Rina, falling from a cliff.
Rina, torn apart by monsters.
Drowning.
Freezing.
Dying. Dying. Dying.
Over and over. Without end. As though time was forcing Han to witness every single one — again and again and again.
A voice whispered through the chaos — soft but cutting through everything.
The shadow of Zenya surfaced in the wreckage of his mind: "Is this… truly the path you have chosen?"
-
Han's eyes snapped open — red, burning with rage and grief and desperation.
Lightning detonated from his body, slamming into the air with a roar that shook the earth.
CRACK–BOOM!
A vortex of water formed, trapping the shadow inside. An explosion of fire followed, incinerating the air. A storm of ice bullets drove through from every direction.
The shadow staggered — its left arm partially destroyed. But it still stood. Still staring with those empty eyes.
In an instant, the shadow lunged.
A sword drove through Han's chest.
"Uhh... uhh..." Blood poured from his mouth.
The shadow's hollow, layered voice resonated:
"The harder you fight to change fate, the deeper you trap yourself within it."
"AHHHHH!"
Han struck with every last thing he had. The shadow was hurled backward, crashing through the trees.
Han fell to his knees, gasping, the wound in his chest fatal.
Tears mixed with blood on his face as his gaze found Rina's body.
"Rina... I will save you. I will."
His hand rose — trembling, wrapped in pulsing light — and the wheel of time was turned back.
"Resetting cycle… number one hundred and thirty-seven."
A flash.
The world dissolved into light.
Sound, color, form — all of it undone.
Reality reset.
Han walked the endless loop once more.
-
A New Cycle Begins
"RINAAAA!"
Han woke with a violent jolt. Cold sweat. Trembling. This time, he remembered everything.
He turned —
Rina. Sleeping peacefully. Alive.
For now.
The cycle continued.
Attempt 138.
To be continued…