A Lost Man

Zephyr lay sprawled in the cold, unforgiving snow, the injured body of a wolf on top of him.

He could feel the weight of the lifeless creature pressing down on his chest, making every breath a laborious effort.

His injuries throbbed with pain, and his vision blurred as the icy air stung his face.

As he fought to stay conscious, a desperate idea crossed his mind. With trembling hands, he reached into his pocket and withdrew a small test tube.

The glass was cool to the touch, and it contained a mysterious, amber liquid.

With his last ounce of strength, he raised the test tube to his lips and swallowed the liquid.

It was a hasty and desperate act, a leap of faith in this strange and perilous world. But as soon as the liquid touched his tongue, a violent cough erupted from his chest. The test tube slipped from his grasp and was flung far into the snow.

"No.."

Zephyr's vision darkened, the world around him growing hazy. The eerie silence of the snow-covered landscape closed in, and he felt the presence of something or someone watching, waiting.

"Brother… I'm sorry.."

With one final, labored breath, his eyes closed, and he slipped into unconsciousness, the mysteries of this place swirling around him like a snowstorm.

***

Reiner, who just experienced a memory fragment, was quite flabbergasted.

He walked a few meters ahead, his boots crunching in the cold snow. The surroundings were both eerily serene and full of unanswered questions.

Curiosity led him to a frozen, ice-covered patch that glistened in the sunlight.

Reiner knelt down and, with a bare hand, carefully cleared the surface of the ice, revealing a cold, reflective layer beneath.

He stared into the ice, squinting as he tried to see his reflection.

"How.."

The cold air stung his face, and the reflection had a surreal quality, as though he were looking at a distant, unfamiliar version of himself.

Is this me? Zephyr?

His black hair had collected delicate snowflakes, and his eyes, a deep shade of grey (charcoal grey), retained their intensity.

They seemed to hold a world of emotions and thoughts, glistening like polished steel, and they betrayed the mixture of wonder, confusion, and determination he felt in this unfamiliar environment.

The bridge of his nose was strong and defined, and his jawline was sharp.

The cold air had left a frosty trace around his eyelashes and on his cheeks, giving his face a wintry blush.

Reiner was stunned. Even though he could only see a blurry face on ice, he could say it was different from his original appearance.

Is this transmigration?

For Reiner, web novels were part of his life. He grew up reading and enjoying them. Still, it was hard to accept.

Am I suffering from some mental disorder?

Is this a side effect of reading too many web novels?

He looked at his reflection for some time. Blinked hundreds of times.

But nothing changed.

In the reflection, he saw a face that was not his own. The features were unfamiliar, and yet, he recognized them as if they were imprinted in his memory. The eyes were a different shade, the hair a different color.

He felt as if he was seeing through the eyes of a stranger who held his deepest secrets and emotions.

"Please.."

Tears welled up in his eyes as he grappled with the realization that he was no longer in his own body.

He would never be able to meet his friends and co-workers. Although it was fortunate, he won't see his ex anymore.

The implications were staggering, and the emotions that swirled within him were a tumultuous mix of confusion, longing, and a sense of displacement.

"Please... someone wake me up if this is nightmare."

Reiner wanted to wake up from this nightmare.

However, the wounds on his body implied - he had to live in this nightmare.

In that moment, he was not just a man trapped in an unknown world; he was a soul connected to another life, another existence.

The reflection in the ice held the key to his identity and his quest for understanding.

The icy mirror became a portal to a new chapter in his journey, one filled with profound emotions and the search for answers to the most existential questions.