For a moment,Gaius flared with anger—or at least,it seemed that way.

  The air grew heavy, as if he were about to demand an explanation from me about everything that had happened.

  I had no clever way out.Swallowing dryly from tension,I tried to rein in my frightened heart.

  Whoosh—

  Gaius ,his face hardened into a stiff mask,turned his gaze toward Claudia, who stood quietly behind him.

  A silence settled in.

  Within it,the two exchanged looks brimming with unspoken meaning—conversations held in glances that I, an outsider, couldn’t even begin to guess at.

  When their wordless exchange ended, Claudia gave a small nod.

  Gaius, visibly struck by a deep sense of loss, bit his lip and clicked his tongue.

  "Damn it…If I’d known it would come to this back then…“

  His low voice,barely audible, carried a bitter mix of self-reproach and regret in a muttered aside.

  "Hoo…“

  With a deep sigh, Gaius rubbed his face as if washing it dry and rose from his seat, his posture now slumping,the complete opposite of the vigor he’d shown when he entered.

  "Enough. Don’t worry about it—just rest well,country brat.“

  Thud thud—

  after a few steps,he stopped abruptly.

  "I’ll be back.“

  With a voice and silhouette tinged with the same complex emotions as Claudia’s earlier, Gaius left the room.

  "Haa…“

  Claudia, now equally weighed down by a heavy mood, didn’t linger either.

  She left after awkwardly propping up the door, which could barely function anymore.

  Once everyone was gone,the room filled with silence again.

  Tasting the solitude that had been the most familiar part of my life once more, I felt a strange mix of comfort,joy,and bitterness.

  Breathing deeply into my lungs the air warmed by the presence of others, I thought to myself, They’ve both figured it out,haven’t they? No matter how many times I replayed the scene in my head,there was no denying it.

  The difference from before was clear evidence:a foreign entity—me—had fused into Damian’s body and stood before them.

  “Humans may seem dull,but in reality,they’re more precise and sensitive than any measuring device,”

  someone once said.

  I suddenly recalled a tidbit of trivia—seemingly useless knowledge that proved invaluable in unusual situations like this.And it’s not just me…That saying wasn’t some far-fetched nonsense.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  I knew it,and so did the two people who had spent time with Damian,the former owner of this body,building precious memories—they’d already realized it too.

  No matter how many scenarios I ran through my mind,hypothesizing this and that, I kept arriving at the same conclusion.

  "Hoo…“

  Living alone for so long had left me unprepared for this overwhelming reality,and it felt unbearably heavy.

  My head throbbed painfully.

  There’s nowhere to run.At least one thing remained constant.

  Giving up entirely on finding solutions to difficult problems beyond my capabilities,I felt a surprising relief wash over me.Carefully,I slid off the bed.

  "Ugh…“

  The cold floor sent a sharp,heavy pain straight to my head as I stood.

  I winced reflexively.As the pain slowly subsided,I began to look around the room—once Damian’s—slowly and meticulously,feeling as though it had always been mine.

  Though the unfamiliar sensation had faded considerably,the room still felt foreign despite my perception.Here,I stumbled upon yet another trace of the fierce life Damian,this young man,had lived.

  What’s this…?

  Medical terminology, detailed records of patients’symptoms and treatments, prescriptions tailored to each case, and progress notes—all meticulously documented and hidden in an inconspicuous spot to prepare for the future.

  There were even records of rare conditions—frustratingly incurable,with palliative care as the only option.

  "Well…“

  He was truly remarkable.

  The fact that he’d devoted himself so completely to helping people shrank me down,making me feel my own hard-lived life was utterly pathetic by comparison.

  Thud—

  "Huh?“

  Just as negative emotions threatened to overtake me,another document slipped from the pile.

  It stood out starkly from the rest—its size,the quality of the paper,everything about it was far from ordinary.

  Why was this hidden so carefully?

  My question was answered the moment I read it.

  He’d predicted a situation like this!

  Not content with merely concealing it among the medical records,he’d stored it in a place only he could find,unwilling to let his weaknesses be exposed to those who might oppose him.

  So everything’s in the magical device…

  It was written that he’d prepared thoroughly—even for the worst-case scenario,including if he forgot how to use mana or its very existence.

  "I sincerely hope this record never needs to be used…"

  I felt a faint gratitude toward Damian,a young man I’d never even met face-to-face,but it was overshadowed by guilt and a heavy heart for having stolen his entire life.

  "Mmm…“

  To access the magical device’s contents,I first needed to sense mana and understand how to wield it.

  Injecting it in a specific sequence with fine control comes after that.

  Perhaps because he was a virtuous doctor in Belgart who helped people,Damian’s explanations were clear and simple enough for someone like me—completely unconnected to this world—to understand without difficulty.

  "This…is this it?!"

  After sweating buckets for dozens of minutes,I finally grasped the concept and existence of mana,something I’d previously had no clue about.

  "He said to channel the right amount in this order."

  I’d been a little intimidated,thinking it’d be incredibly tough for a beginner like me just starting out.

  But my worries proved unfounded—everything flowed smoothly as if guided.

  Once the movements were ingrained in my muscle memory,it became as effortless as weight training—no need to consciously recall each step;it just pulled me along naturally.

  Or perhaps guided is the better word—I wasn’t sure.

  "Ugh!"

  A blinding flash filled my vision,and a flood of information poured into me,so overwhelming it hurt my head.

  After a moment,the headache vanished like a lie,and I could browse the information as easily as if it were something I could hold and examine in my hands.

  Are these the memories Damian recorded in the magical device?

  Compared to searching files on a computer, this was incomparably simpler and more convenient.

  This is pretty incredible.

  I didn’t even need to reach out—just directing my gaze let me grasp the details in an instant.

  As I effortlessly sifted through what barely qualified as work,something caught my eye.

  This…!

  In this virtual space,I encountered a familiar name I hadn’t expected at all.

  It’s not a mistake,right?

  Worried I might have misread it in my haste due to familiarity,I checked again.

  My eyes hadn’t deceived me.

  "Magnificor…"

  Looking at the unchanging information waiting there,I saw a familiar title.Not just something I knew—it was intimately familiar,someone I understood as well as I knew my self.

  Because that person had been my right hand,a comrade sharing the same goals,built on exceptional talent.