Chapter 1: A heartless monster
"Vyral... I think... we should break up." The blonde young woman held her chest tightly, her hand trembling as she struggled to finish her sentence. Her eyes carried a hint of anticipation as she stared at the handsome man in front of her. She wanted to see his emotions – anger, bewilderment, shock. Yet in contrast, she only received a nod and an indifferent reply.
’’Fine.’’
No emotions at all behind my voice.
I didn’t even ask why. Our relationship had been relatively good, with not too much conflict since we started dating five years ago.
Her eyes grew wet and red as her knees gave out. A scene that would make any man’s heart waver and shatter, but not for me.
She clenched her fists while crying.
’’How can you keep that face? Why? Am I just a toy to you? I thought I could fix you... but no.’’
My expression turned complicated as I looked at my girlfriend. In truth, I knew why she wanted to break up with me. It was simply because this was a one-sided love.
I didn’t love her, but I also didn’t hate her. I couldn’t explain my emotions because I had been born that way.
That’s why everyone called me by a name: a "heartless monster." Yet, I understood everyone’s emotions very well.
So, why did I date her in the first place? Maybe ... I just wanted to experience the feeling of loving... but it wasn’t meant for me.
’’I’m sorry.’’
Half a year later, I received a message from her friend – she had died from late-stage cancer, which had already spread to her brain. A quick death.
It turned out, she broke up with me because she was already at death’s door.
Her friend arrived at his house and delivered a brutal, precise uppercut to my chin, sending me tumbling across the floor.
’’FUCK YOU! HOW COULD YOU TREAT HER LIKE THAT? HEARTLESS MONSTER!’’ the man roared, his face twisted with fury.
He clenched his teeth for a moment before turning away. But he stopped for a while and said,
’’Even in death, she still loves you.’’
Then he left.
I lay motionless on the ground for a while before wiping the blood from my lips and standing up.
I didn’t feel anything special, not even guilt.
I continued his work as usual, as if her death meant nothing to me. But I didn’t realize it actually affected me more or less. I often lost focus while working. Not by thinking about her death, but by controlling something inside my heart that had awakened – bloodlust.
I wanted to see blood; it made me feel satisfied. At that time, I understood why I had dated her in the first place. Simply, I needed a drug to restrain the monster inside me.
As if it were fate, on her funeral day, I got into a traffic accident – run over by a truck.
I could tell no one remembered me after I died. The only relative I had was my girlfriend. After all, we both came from the same place – an orphanage.
However, the end of us was different. She built many relationships with others, while I didn’t.
Her funeral had a lot of people, but mine had nothing. Maybe I was cremated, and my ashes were scattered into the river to save cemetery space – a place where no one even bothered to reserve a proper spot for me.
’’A bad end.’’
I muttered while lying on the bed of a room that belonged to a rich kid from high-class society. I sighed when recalling the memories of my old world, where my life couldn’t have ended up any worse. But I often gnawed on old memories to suppress a monster inside me.
It had started becoming active more often ever since I reincarnated into this body three days ago.
I began to have the emotions of a normal human, but for some reason, they always went in a completely negative direction. If so, I didn’t need it.
Suddenly, the door opened, revealing an old butler with a firm face. The calluses on his hands, and the scars on his face, showed what kind of person he was – a veteran fighter who had lived through years of darkness that normal humans couldn’t imagine.
He should’ve shown no emotions, yet his voice still carried a hint of contempt toward me.
’’Henry Albert. The head of the family is calling you. Please, hurry up.’’
He added before leaving.
’’Remember to wear noble attire. We also have a guest.’’
He was the right-hand man of my father – Polly. I mean, the father of this body.
I headed to the wardrobe, picking out some noble attire to wear. I could have chosen modern clothes, but my family still held on to tradition during certain special occasions. Especially among families at the pinnacle of the nobility, like mine – One of the twelve families that wielded the greatest power on the continent of Ashenvale, serving under the royal family.
Well, that was in the past. Now, only five remained. Of course, my family wasn’t one of them. But that didn’t mean we were weak. We had merely lost something crucial to the demons during the Holy War two hundred years ago.
But who cared? Me, someone even a janitor would look down on? A trash [F-] rank potential – worse than even an ordinary person. Thinking about matters on that scale was just a waste of time.
My reflection appeared in the mirror.
A slender young man with pale skin, yet sharp features. My eyes shone like sapphires, and combined with my black hair, they only made me look more handsome.
What a waste. The old Henry had wasted the potential of his genes. If only he had trained more instead of locking himself in his room and sleeping every day, he would have had a much better physique.
I picked up a nearby phone and browsed social media while heading to the family head’s office. Anyway, I needed to familiarize myself with this world a little. Social media wasn’t a bad place to start.
Soon, I stood in front of the office. I opened the door without hesitation.
But the first person I saw wasn’t my father. Instead, it was a blonde girl sitting in a wheelchair beside him. My pupils widened at the sight.
The girl with delicate features and amber eyes was still there. The charming, beautiful image carved into every one of his brain cells remained unchanged, but now, there was a big difference. She no longer carried her usual lively demeanor. Instead, she seemed quiet and hollow.
She looked exactly like my girlfriend. Had she been reborn?
A/N: I hope you’ll send me some signs that it’s working out—comments, reviews, power stones. They would be a huge source of motivation for me.
I will write a villain based on my own understanding of what a true villain is.
Will the protagonist become kinder and learn to express his emotions in the future? --> Yes, he will change, but he won’t become overly kind.
Will the protagonist develop feelings for her in the future? — Definitely! But it won’t be a case of blind infatuation.