Aashish_Kookna

“If you could relive your life—not to chase fame or fortune, but to right your deepest regrets—would you dare face your own past?”

Yun Fei was an ordinary man in his thirties, living a life soaked in the bitter wine of missed opportunities and mistakes. A failed business, a broken family, friendships turned sour, and the loss of the only girl who truly loved him—his world was a long list of what-ifs and if-onlys. He wasn’t evil, but he had been weak. Not cruel, but often silent when he should have spoken. His was a life not ruined by one catastrophic event—but by a thousand small regrets that, over time, swallowed him whole.

And then he died.

Not in glory, not in battle, not even in some poetic tragedy.

Just… alone. Forgotten.

But death wasn’t the end

Born Again with My Future Regrets

Setting: Yun Fei's Apartment – Nightfall

A strange calm had settled in the apartment.

Lin Xiya sat on the edge of the bed, hugging her knees.

Yun Xi lay curled up under a soft blanket on the couch, fast asleep, his chest rising and falling steadily like a normal child's.

Yun Fei stood by the window, rain trailing down the glass.

A child from a life that was real, yet erased.

"I didn't even know I could be a father," he whispered, half to himself.

He saw flashes—of teaching Yun Xi to ride a bike, of burnt toast breakfasts, of bedtime stories under soft yellow light. None of it happened… and yet he remembered it like muscle memory.

"Do you regret knowing?" Lin Xiya asked from behind him.

Her eyes were red, but no tears fell anymore. Her strength, he thought, was made of quiet storms.

"I regret not remembering sooner," he said softly. "I regret that we didn't get to hold him when he was small."

She nodded and stood up, walking to the couch.

She gently brushed Yun Xi's hair back.

"He called me Mama," she whispered. "And I don't know how to live up to that in this world."

She couldn't stop thinking about that sunlit memory—the one with the cherry blossoms.

She had been so happy. Not rich. Not famous. But whole.

And then it had all been taken away.

He looked so peaceful. But even in sleep, his small hands clutched something—a tiny crystal feather.

And she couldn't afford to fail him. Not again.

In the city's digital underlayers, a presence slithered silently.

Kairoth was gone—but the System was not idle.

> Protocol: Null Runners Activated

Target: Unauthorized Echo Entity – Yun Xi

Estimated Time of Breach: 11 Hours 19 Minutes

In a distant alley, something metallic blinked awake.

It was a Null Runner, and it had one command:

> Erase the child before he disrupts the Main Thread.

Lin Xiya made breakfast for the first time in weeks.

Yun Xi smiled sleepily as he bit into his toast.

"It's just like you made it, Mama," he said cheerfully.

He nodded. "You always burnt the corners."

She laughed—and suddenly tears ran down her cheeks.

Yun Fei reached across the table and took her hand.

"We'll protect this," he whispered. "Even if it costs everything."

Yun Fei – Trait Unlocked: 'Temporal Anchor (L1)'

Able to resist memory manipulation for up to 10 seconds during breach events.

> Lin Xiya – Trait Upgraded: 'Echo Sensitivity (L2)'

Can now detect incoming Echo anomalies within 50 meters.

Scene Shift: That Afternoon – Danger Draws Close

While Yun Xi played in the school garden behind their building, Yun Fei stood nearby pretending to scroll his phone.

Suddenly, Lin Xiya's wristband pulsed.

> ALERT: Null Signature Detected – 47 Meters East

A slow chill crawled up her spine.

A tall figure in a janitor's outfit turned into the alley.

> "TARGET ACQUIRED: UNAUTHORIZED ECHO ENTITY: YUN XI"

Yun Fei dropped his phone and shouted, "XIYA—GRAB HIM!"

And saw the man charging, with eyes that had no soul.

Chapter 16: A Son We Never Held