I am Railey

Now that you're caught up, let's get back to the present.

As for me—Alex—I had been thrown into an unfamiliar world and had only been awake for a few seconds before realizing how royally screwed I was.

---

Alex's POV

"Damn it, damn it, damn it! I should have known something was wrong! I can't believe I fell for it! I can't believe I let my guard down!"

I gritted my teeth, practically seething. If I ever see that smug, shiny god face again, I swear I'll make him regret making a fool out of me.

My inner rage fest was rudely interrupted by a small sound to my left. I turned my head and—

There were two little girls peeking at me from under the bed.

I froze. My mind tried to process the situation. Two kids. Same face. Probably twins.

"Big brother is acting weird this morning," one of them whispered.

"Weirdness level is off the charts," the other agreed.

…Wait, big brother?

Before I could question further, the door swung open, and in walked a woman who, judging by her resemblance to the twins, was their mother.

"I told you girls to wake your brother up, not make fun of him," she scolded.

"But you should have seen the way he spoke when he woke up!" the first twin protested.

"Yeah! And his face—it looked like he was about to assassinate someone!" the second added.

I blinked. What kind of vocabulary are they teaching kids these days?

Before I could dwell on that, the mother turned to me, a gentle but firm expression on her face. "We don't have time for jokes, Railey. You'll miss your entrance exam if you keep this up."

I stiffened.

Railey? Who the hell is— oh.

Oh no.

Loki, you bastard.

But right now, I needed to play along.

"Uh… sure," I said hesitantly.

I suddenly realized I had no idea what to call this woman. Was she actually my mother? An aunt? A stepmother? I had to tread carefully.

"Mom?" I tested the waters, keeping my tone as natural as possible.

She didn't react strangely, just nodded and sighed. "Hurry up, we don't have all day."

I exhaled in relief. Alright, that answers that question. Mother-son relationship confirmed. Now, time to gather as much information as possible.

---

Downstairs, we sat around a modest dining table having breakfast. I took note of my surroundings. The house was comfortable—not exactly rich, but definitely not poor either. A solid middle-class setting.

Honestly, given that this was Loki's idea of entertainment, I half-expected to be reborn into an orphan struggling to survive on the streets.

As I ate, I noticed someone missing. No father at the table. Two possibilities: either he was at work, or he was MIA. Judging by the mother's slightly melancholic expression, I was betting on the latter.

Trying to test the waters, I decided to bring up a topic.

"I can't wait to go to school," I said as casually as possible.

The room fell silent.

The mother looked at me in shock, but quickly recovered, smiling warmly. "Really? I'm so happy you're excited about getting into Stellar Academy!"

Stellar Academy.

Something about that name tickled my memory, but I couldn't quite place it. Probably important. Probably something I should've been paying attention to when I signed that damn contract.

The mother continued, "And Lucy got in as well! You remember Lucy, right? My friend's daughter? I hope you two get along!"

I instinctively turned to the twins, only to find them staring at me like I had just grown a second head.

'So Railey wasn't much of a talker, huh? Good to know. Helps me piece together his personality.'

I nodded and smiled as naturally as possible, then quickly focused on finishing my meal.

Once done, I carried my dishes to the sink… and then immediately regretted it.

The kitchen appliances looked way too advanced.

This wasn't just your regular sink and dishwasher—this was some futuristic, high-tech setup that I had absolutely no idea how to operate.

Panic.

I started sweating as I desperately tried to figure out how to wash a plate without pressing a button that might cause an explosion or open a portal to another dimension.

Luckily, Mom walked into the kitchen at that moment, noticing my dilemma. She chuckled and patted my shoulder.

"If you can't even do the dishes, how will you take care of yourself?" she teased.

Her tone was lighthearted, but her expression carried a mixture of joy and sadness—probably because her son was leaving for school.

I quickly adjusted my expression into something fitting Railey's apparent personality: a cool, emo-ish, nonchalant face. "I'll be fine," I muttered.

Mom seemed satisfied and let it go. I internally sighed in relief.

As I tried to make my way out of the kitchen, her voice suddenly turned serious.

"You've been acting weird ever since you woke up this morning."

I froze.

A chill ran down my spine.

Crap.

Busted.

I quickly ran through my options. Deny? Too suspicious. Play dumb? Risky. Fake illness? Possible.

I turned around slowly, carefully keeping my face neutral.

"Weird? How so?" I asked, trying to sound casual.

Mom narrowed her eyes. "For one, you never talk to me for more than a few seconds . Secondly , you've never once said you were excited about school. And you even called me mom"

Crap. Crap. Crap.

The twins peeked into the kitchen, grinning mischievously. "Ooooh, Mom's got you cornered!"

"Are you an imposter?" the other twin added.

I swallowed hard. Why do these kids sound like they'd be great detectives in a crime drama?!

Mom sighed, rubbing her temples. "It's probably nerves about the entrance exam," she muttered.

Yes. Yes. Let's go with that!

I quickly nodded. "Yeah, that must be it."

Mom studied me for a moment longer before finally relenting. "Alright. Just don't let it get to your head. Stellar Academy is a great opportunity, so do your best."

I forced a smile. "Of course, Mom."

As she left the kitchen, the twins remained behind, still staring at me.

"Hmm… we'll be watching you."

Then they scurried off, giggling.

I exhaled deeply. That was way too close.

Loki, you absolute bastard.

I wasn't just thrown into a fantasy world—I was thrown into someone else's life.

And now, I had to figure out how to be Railey… before someone figured out I wasn't.