Not the Key

Maybe he should just sit there and wait for Raine to rescue him.

But that felt a little pathetic. How could he let a lady save him like that?

Vince sighed and stepped closer to the edge of the rock, glancing down at the ground, which looked as far away as if he were standing on the 100th floor of a skyscraper.

From the novels he had read, illusions like this were often said to feed on the prisoner's fears. The more fear you showed, the harder it became to break free.

Vince's human weaknesses had always been his fear of heights and his fear of getting struck by lightning. The latter seemed almost silly, but that fear had taken root when he witnessed someone get struck by lightning right in front of him.

Such a silly girl, he thought. He was a demon now, and he believed he wouldn't be so easily killed. In a way, he was grateful she gave him a chance to confront his insignificant mortal fears.

Vince stepped to the very edge of the rock, his feet close together, and turned his back to the dizzying drop below. Crossing his arms over his chest, he placed his hands on his shoulders.

He didn't close his eyes as he let himself fall. Instead, he looked up at the gray skies, which seemed to scowl down at him, and he smiled.

In this life, in this world, he wouldn't let his fears hold him back.

If he was trapped in an illusion crafted by the girl, he knew one way to break it was to create a paradox that would destabilize the illusion.

The girl must have designed it to evoke fear, feeding off his deepest anxieties. But by willingly jumping into what should terrify him, he created a paradox, the illusion could no longer function as intended because its power source was undermined.

The rush of wind made Vince want to close his eyes, but he didn't. He kept his gaze locked on the thunderous sky, still smiling.

When he first found himself atop the towering rock, he had been genuinely scared. But once he realized it was likely just an illusion aimed at consuming his mind with fear, he decided to embrace his fear and break the illusion.

As he fell, he realized that after this, he would likely never feel the same fear when jumping from high places again. Not anymore. He guessed the cliff diving he had done before had helped, though it was nowhere near as high as the point he had just jumped from.

Expecting that he had shattered the illusion, Vince braced himself to find that he was back at Raine's residence.

But instead, he landed in a pool of mud, feeling the sharp pain as his back hit the ground.

He stood up wincing, and he checked to see if his limbs were all intact.

Yeah, they were.

Goodness gracious, what just happened???

He looked up at the column-like rock towering over him. Then he glanced around. He had fallen into a muddy pond, and now his clothes were soaked and filthy.

He couldn't understand what had happened. Wasn't he supposed to be back in reality? He had embraced his fear, refusing to let it consume him, and that should have broken the illusion.

Or maybe he was wrong. Embracing the fear wasn't the key.

Then what is?

The illusion must have a weakness. Or perhaps there was a riddle to solve—a hidden key, maybe?

Vince stepped out of the muddy pond, frowning at the mud caked all over his body and boots. He took off his shirt and used its cleaner parts to wipe the mud from his head.

He kept his trousers on. It would be shameless to strip down, even if he did have a sexy body.

Just after dropping his mud-soaked shirt on the ground, he heard a voice behind him.

"Oh, do I have a guest?"

The voice didn't excite Vince in the least. It was a male voice.

He turned around and saw a young man who looked to be around his age, maybe younger. The man wore decent clothes—trousers, a shirt, and a vest that was unbuttoned. He was a few centimeters shorter than Vince, but his body was lean and muscular, much like Vince's. His hair was the color of chocolate.

Vince didn't look at the man's face first because his eyes quickly fell on what the man was holding.

A fucking axe.

'Okay, it's time to take a step back, isn't it?'

"Who are you?" Vince asked, trying to act cool as if the big axe on the man's shoulder didn't pose a threat.

From the axe, he looked at the man's face, then at his clothes and everything about him.

"It's you who came here into my territory. I should be the one asking you that."

'Ah, another psycho. Is he some sort of accomplice of the girl?' Vince thought, scowling at the man.

He was already tired from his first day of training, and now he was in the middle of another dangerous situation. The man's eyes held a hostility that suggested he couldn't wait to chop his trespasser's body to pieces and toss it onto the grill.

Vince realized what a big mistake it had been to take that walk in the garden when he could have been lying comfortably in bed. A walk was unnecessary! He should remember next time not to wander around the residence.

"You must be a friend of that raven-haired girl."

The man's eyes narrowed. "What are you talking about?"

"The girl with short black hair, about this tall, with pretty grey eyes." Vince didn't know the girl's name, so he could only describe her appearance.

The man looked genuinely clueless, which made Vince ponder.

"I don't know what you're talking about. But I don't have time for a chat. You must be here to ruin my peace."

The man gripped his big axe and dragged it on the ground as he slowly walked toward Vince.

Uh-oh.