CHAPTER 1
I introduce myself all the time.
Just not out loud.
It always happens the same way. I stand there, thinking of the simplest words—Hello, my name is Foy Fram—and yet my throat refuses to cooperate. My legs feel light, unstable, like they don't belong to me. By the time I gather enough courage, the moment has already passed.
So I do it in my head instead.
My name is Foy Fram. I'm twenty years old.
No one hears it.
That's fine.
There's no one waiting to.
I live alone in a small apartment close to where I work. The place isn't special—just enough space for a bed, a table, and a shelf filled with books I probably won't finish anytime soon. The walls feel thinner at night, especially when footsteps echo from somewhere above, but I've gotten used to it.
It's quiet.
I like quiet.
My job is at a bookstore. Not the kind you see in crowded streets or malls. Ours is tucked away, almost hidden, like it doesn't want to be found. Customers don't come in large numbers. Sometimes hours pass without the door opening.
That never bothered me.
Books are enough.
They don't ask questions. They don't expect answers. They don't stare when you hesitate. You just open them, and they let you in.
I read whenever I can.
Novels, web novels, translations, random stories that don't even have an author listed. I even write sometimes, though I keep everything to myself. No one needs to see it.
Lately, there's been one book I can't stop thinking about.
I don't remember seeing it arrive.
It wasn't part of the store's inventory. No label. No record. It just existed one day, sitting on a shelf like it had always been there.
No one else mentioned it.
No one picked it up.
Except me.
The title was simple.
The Fallen One.
I picked it up without thinking.
Ever since then, something hasn't felt right.
"Foy, oppa."
I lifted my head.
Mi-ra stood in front of the counter, holding a book against her chest, her eyes full of energy as always.
She comes here almost every day. I don't know when that started, but now it feels strange when she doesn't show up.
"What's the best book you can recommend?" she asked.
I looked at the shelves, buying time.
Recommending something shouldn't be hard. Still, I hesitated longer than necessary before reaching for a book nearby.
"This one," I said, holding it out. "The Rising Woman. It's good."
She leaned closer, checking the cover.
"The last copy?" she asked.
I nodded.
"You should take it."
Her expression brightened.
"Really?"
"…Yeah."
"And you can keep it."
"For free?"
I looked away.
"You're here all the time anyway."
She smiled, wider than before.
"Thank you, oppa."
I didn't answer. I never know what to say after that.
"I think I'll stay for a bit," she added.
"Why?"
"I'm bored at home. I already finished ten books yesterday."
My head snapped up.
"What?"
She laughed, unable to hold it in.
"I'm joking!"
"Don't do that."
"You reacted so fast."
"If you keep doing that, I'll start charging you extra."
"Oppa wouldn't do that."
I didn't respond.
Instead, I reached for the book beside me.
She noticed immediately.
"What's that one?"
"This?" I lifted it slightly. "My favorite right now."
"It looks… heavy."
"It is."
"How many chapters?"
"Six hundred."
Her eyes widened.
"Where are you now?"
"Three hundred thirty-three."
"Since when?"
"…About a week."
She stared at me like I'd lost my mind.
"That's not normal."
"Probably not."
But it didn't feel strange to me.
Not really.
"This story…" I tapped the cover lightly. "It pulls you in."
"What's it about?"
"A man named Gaizer."
"Main character?"
"Yeah."
"What's he like?"
I flipped through the pages until I found the part I remembered.
"People turned on him," I said. "Not because he failed—but because he was too strong."
"That doesn't make sense."
"They were afraid of what he could do."
She frowned.
"So they blamed him for it?"
"Yeah."
"That's unfair."
"It is."
She crossed her arms, thinking.
"Then who's the villain?"
"I don't know."
"You're halfway through and still don't know?"
I shook my head.
"It's not clear. It feels like the answer is always just out of reach."
"That's annoying."
"Maybe."
"If you were him, what would you do?"
I didn't need time to think.
"I'd keep going."
"Even if everyone turned against you?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
I closed the book slowly.
"Because stopping wouldn't change anything."
She looked at me for a moment, her expression softer than before.
"That sounds like something you'd actually do."
I frowned slightly.
"Does it?"
"Yeah."
Before I could say anything else, something outside caught my attention.
A sharp noise echoed from the street.
Mi-ra turned toward the door.
"Oppa… what was that?"
"Stay here."
I stepped away from the counter and walked toward the entrance.
The handle felt colder than usual.
I pushed the door open.
And everything changed.
A man stood in the middle of the street.
White hair reached past his shoulders, moving slightly with the wind. His armor was black, worn down like it had seen too many battles. In his hand, a sword rested, its presence heavier than anything I had ever seen.
My breath caught.
"…Gaizer."
The name came out before I realized it.
This wasn't possible.
He wasn't real.
He shouldn't be here.
My eyes shifted to the sword.
Ramnir.
It was supposed to shine like sunlight, a weapon that represented hope.
But what I saw now—
It was dark.
Not dull.
Not broken.
Just… different.
Like something had changed at its core.
"…Oppa?"
Mi-ra's voice came from behind me.
"What's going on?"
"Mi-ra, come here—"
I turned.
She wasn't there.
"…Mi-ra?"
I stepped back inside, my heartbeat picking up.
"Mi-ra?"
I checked the storage room.
Nothing.
The staff room.
Empty.
Every corner, every aisle, every space she could have hidden in—
Nothing.
"…Where did you go…?"
I moved back toward the entrance.
Outside—
Everything was wrong.
The street had no movement.
No people.
No sound.
Just one figure standing exactly where he had been.
Gaizer.
His eyes were fixed on me.
Before I could move—
He disappeared.
And then he stood right in front of me.
I couldn't react.
My body refused.
The distance between us vanished like it never existed.
He raised his sword and pointed it at me.
"…Child."
His voice felt heavy, like it carried something beyond just words.
"…Why do I sense my existence within this world?"
I tried to answer.
My mouth opened, but nothing came out fast enough.
The blade moved.
A single motion.
Clean.
Final.
That was the moment everything ended.
And also—
The moment everything began.