"Heavens? Nature? It can't be. Both never talked. They just got in my way."

"Why would you call him that? That's giving that asshole too much credit."

"I don't know if I would call something that can control the flow of a whole world an asshole."

"You would call them exactly that and nothing else. I know you too well."

Ben sensed where the voice was coming from, as they weren't trying to hide it. They were doing the opposite, making it very easy for him to locate the source.

"You're doing a good job impersonating him. You're even at that place, I guess."

"Would you believe me if I told you otherwise? I could spend the whole time trying, and you would still not believe me 100%."

"Why would you do this to my world?" Ben noticed a big spell setup that made his whole body shudder.

"Is this yours? I don't think so. It's your brother's world."

"His? Why his? And if you can do that much, why are you talking to me?"

"To remember the good old times that weren't yet. And come on, you know it. The entire world moves at his desire. To who else would it belong?"

Silence followed as the power retreated as if it couldn't keep talking from such a distance.

'An invitation...' Ben thought before he began walking toward the creature.

He entered deep into the ruined dungeon. And while doing so, he noticed the lack of monsters. Almost as if all of them went into hiding.

Every step Ben took built up a sense of helplessness in his heart. But the unobstructed path didn't feel long.

And he didn't take long to notice that the room he was going to was indeed the same one where Pel died.

'This is truly fucked up.'

"Come in."

After entering the same room from his memories, Ben saw the sight he feared.

"This world is filled with sicko bastards!"

The room was small and had a trap triggered next to an altar.

The floor receded on the other side of the room, and spikes sprouted from the floor, wall, and ceiling.

Entangled inside the trap was a young man. He seemed to have struggled a bit, so he had a contorted body.

Around the young man, small pieces of bones, cloth, and metal filled the floor.

Ben was sure this was the same dammed place he visited, almost five thousand years ago.

"Sicko bastards? HA, HA, HA! I COULDN'T AGREE MORE! But why don't you come closer, fear-filled turtle?"

"Do you like playing with people? Pel..."

"Oh no, you remembered me so easily. I'm flattered. But that was such a waste since I wanted to prank you. Boooo. Anyway, do you want to play another game?"

The contorted body punctured to its place talked freely. Its head had turned around slightly more than it should. And those eyes filled with madness now stared at Ben.

After walking slightly close, Ben noticed that the chained and dried body was indeed somewhat alive.

After looking around, he also finally saw the weird setup. However, what he felt wasn't a ritual made of arrays, but more closely to what he guessed would be a magical spell. Yet, despite his lack of knowledge, Ben felt sure those rules and intentions didn't belong to this world.

"Don't even try to string me along, psycho."

Ben's appearance had completely changed once again.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

His skin, deep black, emitted light from its peculiar pattern.

The flower-like structure sprouted in his upper body again, releasing his full memory bank.

He was Ben Higgs, his complete self.

"AAAAAAAH, such a lovely ODDITY. So much pleasure to see you in your full splendor. I LOVE YOU, HIGGS! I LOVE YOU!"

"But we couldn't be more different, it seems."

"Don't the opposites attract each other?"

"It doesn't seem so. So, what do you want?"

"Bet."

"I don't play games."

"Bet."

"Do you think you are funny?"

"No, I think I'm quite terrifying. But you seem unmoved."

"You're just crazy."

"Do you know how hard it was to talk to you? TO YOU? DO YOU KNOW? I CAN'T EVEN BELIEVE I DID IT. I DID IT! Although I'm sad I couldn't meet you on Earth, it was impossible. The seal was too absolute. And I tried so many times!"

"Is this even talking?"

"This is, well, like you would say, HEAVENS' DEFYING!"

"Was it all a lie?"

"I just didn't want you to die and suffer. But if you want to know, there was no other Pel if it wasn't me. That was me. In the same way that you are Ben and Philip."

"I see. We were already playing a game. Are you implying that it should be me in your place? Or did you save me in other ways? The most obvious is that you sent me home sooner and set me up with the workshop quicker."

"No games. That was just me being too attached to my good friend. I didn't want a one-sided relationship inside my mind. And I also didn't want you to suffer as much. Although, right now, this is just me making a bet. ON YOU. I AM BETTING ON YOU!"

Tired, Ben decided to stop this, so he took a walking stick from his chest.

A big chunk of the runes around his body flowed towards the walking stick. They enveloped this artifact as they began to build up.

"YES! Are you going to kill me? Can you kill me? CAN YOU? WILL YOU? AH, KILL ME! KILL ME! KILL ME! STOP THIS! 100? NO! 300? NO! 600? NO!"

Cracking sounds filled the room.

Not long after, Ben moved, throwing the long stick like a spear.

"1000!"

The attack pierced everything in its way as it embedded itself in the creature in front of Higgs.

"THIS! THIS! THIS! It isn't enough. I'm sad. Why do you never choose to kill me? You are too much like my brother, but he at least has the excuse of not wanting to give up control." The creature responded in a sad voice.

"Why would I play at your pace? Just leave. This world is under my protection."

"Aren't you curious? There is more out there! An infinite amount of worlds! A tree! Stronger people! OUR HOME! A FUTURE AND MANY MYSTERIES!"

"And I'm glued here. So what?"

"Don't you want to try it? There is a non-zero chance I can bring you out right now!"

"Try? If I don't want to, will you cry?"

"I WILL."

"Laughable, you crazy bastard. Is this the best you can come up with?"

"I'll be somewhere. I WILL REMEMBER YOU. What are you going to do? I'll be rooting for you. I'll be betting on you. ON YOU! ON YOU! ON YOU! HIGGS! FOR ALL THE MEMORIES I CAN HOLD OF YOU! DUE TO ALL THE THINGS I CAN SEE!"

"So you are a seer? So, can you see everything? And this is the best you can come up with?"

"It's quite boring otherwise, my dear friend. You must remember me. I'm Pel, the ALL seer!"

"Friend? Ha, haha."

"We could still be. We can be. And we always are. I can see it! All the paths you take would lead you to me!"

"I don't see that happening now. But maybe if you lied like last time?"

"Even if I just played with you for long enough like this. It's inevitable! We find each other fascinating!"

"But you didn't choose that. And back then, at best, you lied despite fully knowing me. At worst, you are just a psycho taking over my friend's body."

"That would've been lovely, then, but the conclusion wouldn't be pleasant. It would've been quite saddening. I don't like it."

"So, why do you try this instead?"

"I'm following someone else advice. To just do what I like. The words were: Does it matter if you can see everything if you never choose what you like? He convinced me to stop being bothered by reality or my brother and do what I like."

"And next, you must mention that someday, somewhere, and somehow, I would say that to you."

"You know me so well. So well! And you know yourself even better!"

"So let's say I believe you. Why did you come here early? We shouldn't meet right now, I guess."

"To show you. THIS. THERE IS AN OUTSIDE. THERE IS MORE! THERE IS HOPE! I'M HELPING!"

"For yourself?"

"DON'T YOU LIE TO ME, BASTARD! I CAN SEE THE FUTURE. I CAN SEE EVERYTHING! I KNOW WHAT YOU WANT. I KNOW IT ALL!"

"And this is the best you can come up with?"

"YES! I AM A GENIUS! FUCK THIS WORLD. I'M BRINGING YOU WITH ME!"

"Laughable."

The creature's eyes began to lose their light of madness.

"There is so much that could be. What would you do if you knew everything? Nothing matters. Everyone dies. Everything fails. What do you know?"

"That I'll extract you from my world. Then, I'll protect the people I care about. And I'll get to see the end of this world. And feel it. Nothing."

"And you hope that's enough? You'll never have your brother back like this, and you'll never stand up from your sick bed. That nest still chains you down even today. Get up! Take a bet with me! Let's get out. I will show you my brother and the reason you hated reincarnation!"

"A renegade that can see it all. And this is the best you can come up with. A bet on a broken thing."

"Perfection is a crime. Yet, what you call Heavens still tinker with your brother, hoping to build it. And you? You decided to hide away like a turtle because you are too far from it. Are you going to forever live in their shadow? You can't stack regrets this much! Perfection is a crime!"

"Yet, I am a perfectionist."

"You aren't."

"Maybe not. But what you chose to set, those aren't expectations I will carry. Get fucked. You are wasting your ability if this is the best you can come with."

Ben, overwhelmed with conflicted feelings, became unstable. He hated this creature for doing this, yet, he couldn't pull the trigger immediately.

Ben felt his body burning due to the delay. But he still held it because he sensed in his mind the brewing of memories that shouldn't exist. And because all his instinct yelled at him to believe this guy, but not to fully agree with him, only to acknowledge this insane story.