As he reopened his eyes, he found himself in a stadium. Or rather a boxing stadium. He was on the ring. He did not need to look at himself to recall this memory and when it happened. He fought only once in such a stadium. He had been twenty-one at the time and just finished his basic training. This day was supposed to be his first step to becoming the recognized strongest man...
As he looked at his opponent, he couldn't help but sigh. He didn't even remember the name of that boxer. Fact was, back then, he had trashed him in a few hits. This was the reason he gave up on martial arts as a sport and began his journey. The disappointment he felt at the time was beyond everything. He had trained so hard in hope to duel worthy foes and yet, he ended up against this kind of small fry...
And that small fry had been lauded as the best of the best back then... It was an exhibition match: newcomer vs champion. And he made short work of the champion. As he glanced at the champion, he asked him if he was his inner demon. The boxer frowned slightly and cursed him instead. Typical boxer trash-talk before the match...
Jin didn't wait no longer. As the fight began, he K.O'ed the guy in seconds. At the time, he was a newbie right now compared to his older self. Experience was something else. As he looked at the man sprawled over the ring, he sighed. There were the familiar cheers of the crowd, the MC's loud sentences and so on... As he left the ring, he thought he would be going to a new place in his consciousness. He didn't. Surprisingly.
He kept moving on and was stopped not long later by a beauty. ... Nara ... She was one of the other disciples of his first Master. Right, he could finally recall. This wasn't about the disappointment of the fight. It was about that girl. Seeing the look of realization on his face, the girl chuckled and said: "Finally got it? Yeah, your demon here is her. Remember what she told you here back then?"
Jin nodded and answered: "She confessed her love to me" Still with a smile on her face, 'Nara' asked Jin: "And what did you do?" Jin sighed as he honestly answered: "I told her off and left without looking back" Nara asked him: "Do you regret it?"
Jin took some time before finding his answer: "No, I don't. That's not what I regret"
Nara grinned as she told him: "Of course, you don't regret it. You have no idea what you lost that day. Fortunately for you, I will let you become aware of it"
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After this, Jin felt something inexplicable. He was still in his own body but he felt like a passenger. He was no longer in control of anything. He lived that memory once more...
Nara stopped Jin at the doors after he left the ring victorious. She grasped all her courage and confessed: "I love you, Jin. Always have, always will" While in his memory, in his past life, he had rejected her coldly, this time he didn't. He could feel himself smiling as he bent one knee and took out something from the boxer's cloak he had been given upon exiting the area of the fight.
It was a little red box. He opened it to reveal a diamond ring and said: "I have always loved you, Nara, and always will too. Will you do me the greatest honor of becoming my wife?"
The young woman answered 'Yes' without hesitation while crying in happiness. Then, they kissed. And time went by as Jin never got to get back control of himself. He lived himself getting married, staying in the sports industry and making a name along with money, having kids, retiring and opening his own school, having grandkids, witnessing his loved one's death and finally, dying himself on a simple bed, surrounded by his family and disciples. It was a life filled with love and fulfillment.
As he died, his 'soul' exited his body and the world froze. 'Nara' reappeared. Youthful as she had been when she confessed to him back then. And she said: "That's what you missed. Now, do you regret it?"
Jin answered: "I do not regret my choice back then. This life you made me experience... It was incredible and I am grateful to you for this opportunity, demon. However, I do not regret my past choice. In this life, I found love and had a family of my own...but my martial arts... I never once felt truly alive practicing them. The meaning behind who I was...It changed with time. In the live I just lived, I sacrificed myself"
Nara asked him: "Do you really feel that way? A woman who loved you till her last breath, kids and grandkids who showered you with love, disciples who respected and treasured you, fans all over the world, a name left in history... Wasn't that what you dreamt of? Fame, Money, Love, you had everything"
Jin answered with a sad smile: "But I didn't feel truly alive even once. Martial arts were a way to push myself to the edge. More than fame, money and love, I prefer a fight at the edge. I regret not having been able to get both. But if I had to make that choice once more? I would still reject Nara. A life in which you don't truly feel alive isn't worth it to me"
The demon laughed as it said: "True, 'I' am that kind of man after all. Only battles pushing me to overcome my limits, only battles at the edge of life and death, were stimulating. Only then was 'I' able to feel alive. To feel whole. ... Or am I having delusions? Do you truly not regret it? Deep inside of you?"
Jin answered with a radiant smile: "I don't. I am grateful you let me experience this life but I don't regret not living it. My existence, my meaning, it is to pursue the peak"
The inner demon that looked like 'Nara' nodded thoughtfully before snapping its fingers. Jin felt the world tremble and shake, the illusion breaking. Then it was the dizziness once again and the blacking out.