Past Is Past

Varian staggered back, confusion flickering across his face. His body trembled—not from fear, but from the sheer shock of what had just happened. His power, his system fragment, had been taken from him.

By me.

I clenched my fist, feeling the raw energy surging through my veins. It wasn't just an increase in strength. It was his knowledge. His instincts. His experience.

And now, they were mine.

Varian's voice was hoarse. "That ability… that shouldn't be possible."

I stepped forward. He stepped back.

The smirk that had been on his face moments ago was gone, replaced by something far more satisfying—panic.

I tilted my head. "I thought you said you saw every future where I lost?"

Varian's fingers twitched, trying to summon magic. Nothing happened.

I grinned. "Guess your system didn't warn you about this, huh?"

Damon, who had been groaning on the ground moments ago, pushed himself up, rubbing his jaw. He glanced at me, then at Varian, eyes narrowing. "Okay… what the hell just happened?"

I didn't take my eyes off Varian. "I took his power."

Damon blinked. "You—wait. What?"

Varian let out a sharp breath, his mind clearly racing for an escape. I could see it in his eyes. He wasn't fighting to win anymore. He was trying to survive.

Too bad.

I lunged.

Varian barely managed to duck, rolling across the floor and snatching up a broken dagger from one of the fallen guards. He slashed wildly, but I saw it before he even moved. His attacks felt slow. Predictable.

Because I knew them.

I dodged easily, weaving between his desperate strikes. Then, when his footing wavered for a fraction of a second—

I countered.

My fist slammed into his ribs, and I felt bones crack.

Varian let out a strangled gasp, stumbling back. His grip on the dagger loosened, and I kicked it away. He was losing.

Damon finally caught up, stepping beside me. He whistled. "Damn. You're making this look easy."

I rolled my shoulders. "It is."

Varian coughed, blood dripping from his lips. His hands trembled as he tried to summon another spell, but he didn't have enough power left.

I clenched my fist. I should finish this.

And yet… something didn't feel right.

The system flickered.

[DING!]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

▶ [Warning: Unknown Anomaly Detected]

▶ [Power Signature Unstable]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

I frowned. Unstable?

Then, I saw it.

A dark crack began to form across Varian's body. His breathing grew ragged, his skin paling unnaturally. He looked… wrong.

I took a step forward, but something slammed into my chest.

An invisible force threw me back, knocking the air from my lungs.

Damon cursed. "Shit! What was that?!"

Varian slowly lifted his head, a crooked, twisted grin stretching across his bloodied lips. His eyes—once sharp and calculating—were now wild. Unhinged.

His body shuddered violently, like something inside him was breaking apart.

Then, he laughed.

"Ah… so this is what happens when I lose?" His voice was hoarse, but there was a sick kind of amusement in it. "Interesting. I never got to see this part before…"

I pushed myself up, my instincts screaming at me to stay alert. Something was very wrong.

The system flashed again.

[WARNING!]

▶ [System Fragment Self-Destruct Imminent]

▶ [Host Is Advised To Evacuate Immediately]

My eyes widened. Self-destruct?!

I turned to Damon. "MOVE!"

We barely had time to react before Varian's body erupted.

A massive shockwave tore through the chamber, blasting stone and debris in all directions. The walls cracked, the ceiling shuddered. The sheer force hurled us back, slamming us into the ground.

Dust filled the air. The entire fortress trembled.

I coughed, trying to push myself up. "Damon?!"

A groan came from the rubble. "Alive… but pissed off."

The dust finally settled, and I looked toward where Varian had been.

Or rather—where he should have been.

There was nothing left.

Only a charred crater in the center of the room, the stone melted from the sheer intensity of the explosion. His body was gone. Completely erased.

The system chimed.

[DING!]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

▶ [Varian Eliminated – Quest Complete]

▶ [Reward: New System Program Unlocked]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

I barely had time to process it before another notification popped up.

[NEW SYSTEM PROGRAM UNLOCKED!]

▶ [Assimilation: Full Integration]

▶ [Effect: You may now absorb the memories and powers of defeated system users]

I inhaled sharply. That meant…

Varian's memories. His knowledge. His power.

I could take all of it.

Damon dusted himself off, grimacing. "Well… that was dramatic." He glanced at me. "You good?"

I hesitated. "Yeah."

I wasn't sure if I was lying.

Because the moment I activated the ability—

Everything flooded in.

Visions. Memories. His past. His second life.

And then—a single, terrifying truth.

I froze.

Damon noticed. "Hey. What's wrong?"

I slowly turned to him, my voice barely above a whisper.

"…Varian wasn't working alone."

Damon frowned. "What?"

My hands tightened into fists. My heart pounded.

Because in those stolen memories, I saw them.

The others.

Not just one. Not just two.

There were more like him.

More regressors.

More system users.

And they were waiting.