The Guilty One

Arka opened his eyes and found himself inside a room he didn't recognize. "Where am I?" he muttered and slowly stood up. The room was filled with girly stuff—plushies, glittery curtains, perfume bottles—that alone was enough to irritate him. As he moved toward the door, it suddenly opened from the outside.

A woman walked in. She had pale skin, long blue hair with one eye covered, and wore revealing clothes that highlighted her curves and cleavage. Arka immediately backed away, his eyes narrowing. "Who are you? And why am I here?" he asked, but the woman didn't answer right away. Instead, she approached him slowly with a mischievous smirk.

"Let me come closer to you," she said, chuckling slightly.

As she lunged at him, Arka vanished from his spot and reappeared near the door. She bumped into the wall and rubbed her head, confused. Looking back, she saw Arka staring at her coldly. What speed...

"I'll ask again. Who are you, and why am I here?" Arka said. His eyes scanned the house. It was a large, but instead of decorations, it was filled with machines, broken robots and tools. That's when he noticed—his device and sword were missing. His gaze snapped to a desk near the bed. They were there.

He quickly rushed to the desk and picked up his things. The woman let out another chuckle. "You're really protective of your gear. Don't worry, I'm not a thief," she said playfully. Then she turned to leave the room.

"Where's D.Cock?" Arka asked without lowering his guard.

She looked back at him with a smile. "First, come out of that cute little room. I know you're already tired of being surrounded by pink cushions and heart-shaped lamps."

"You're right," he replied, stepping out. She pointed toward the sofa.

"Go sit down. I'll tell you everything you want to know. And I've got a few questions for you too," she added with another mischievous smirk.

Arka sat down on the soft sofa, still cautious but trying not to show it. The woman left for a moment and returned from the kitchen with two cups of coffee. She placed one in front of him, then sat down in a chair across from the sofa. Her movements were relaxed, as if she didn't mind the tension in the air.

"Now tell me, who are you? And why am I here?" Arka asked plainly.

She took a slow sip from her cup before answering. "I'm Verina—a doctor and biologist. You were badly injured, and there's no one else in this district more skilled than me. So I treated you. It's been about three days since you passed out."

Arka nodded slowly, processing what she said. He was just about to ask something else, but as soon as he opened his mouth, she gently pressed a finger on his lips.

"You asked your first question. Now let me ask mine," she said with a slight smile.

Arka leaned back, giving her a blank stare but choosing not to stop her. Verina set her cup down and looked him in the eye. "Are you... by any chance, Test Subject-7?"

Arka's expression changed in an instant. His blade flashed out and landed at her throat, just barely piercing the skin. A thin line of blood formed where the edge touched her neck.

"...How do you know about my past?" he asked, his voice low and sharp.

Verina didn't flinch, but instead lowered her gaze, her expression turning guilty. "I was... one of the scientists," she said softly. "One of those who planted that alien stone inside you…" She closed her eyes, fully expecting him to strike her down.

But instead, she felt the pressure at her throat disappear. She opened her eyes and saw Arka pulling his blade back and slipping it away.

"Why… you stopped?" she asked, confused.

Arka scratched his head, looking more annoyed than angry. "It doesn't matter."

Her eyes widened. "What?!"

She stared at him, stunned. That wasn't the reaction she expected, not from someone who had been turned into a test subject. She thought he'd explode in rage, maybe even take her head off. But instead… he acted like it was just another line in his story.

---

"As I said—it doesn't matter," Arka repeated, his tone calm but firm. "Because it doesn't change the fact that earthlings are considered trash, bandits and lab rats."

He looked at her for a second, then smirked slightly.

"Instead, I should thank you for planting that stone inside me. If you hadn't, I would've ended up like the rest, another bandit, getting hunted down by bounty hunters."

With that, he placed his sword back on his back and clicked the device into his chest.

[ARKA! ARE YOU OKAY?!] Lisa's voice came out in a clearly panicked tone.

Verina raised an eyebrow in surprise, staring at the device on Arka's chest. She had seen many AI systems before, but none of them ever sounded so... emotional. "That's your AI? She sounds way more human than machine," she said, genuinely intrigued.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Arka replied, adjusting his coat and glancing at Verina. "This doctor treated me."

Arka moved toward the exit, his coat swaying slightly as he walked. Just before stepping out, he paused and asked without turning back, "Where is D.cock?"

Verina crossed her arms and replied calmly, "He ran away after you collapsed, but the ISF caught him. He's in prison now."

Arka nodded and was about to step out when she added, "And… you've been exposed. The government knows now that you have powers beyond normal limits. It won't take them long to figure out who you really are."

A smirk crept onto Arka's face. "Perfect," he said under his breath. Exactly as I thought it would go.

He turned to her briefly. "Thank you, doctor, for treating me. Here's your fee." He placed some money on the wooden drawer by the door.

"I don't need it," Verina said as she walked over and tried to hand it back.

But Arka gently pushed it toward her again. "See, I don't take anything for free. Not even tension."

Then, without another word, he opened the door and left.

She stood quietly at the door, eyes fixed on the money Arka had left behind. Her fingers curled slightly, trembling.

You've changed, Aru... she thought, I didn't see that loneliness in your eyes anymore… that empty look, that nihilism... it's gone.

Her eyes slowly closed, and her fist clenched tightly by her side.

I'm sorry.

I never wanted to throw you back to Earth to die... but... but I had no choice.

---

Arka walked through the district calmly, hands in his pockets, eyes half-lidded. People watched him from afar, their gazes filled with fear and confusion. Whispers echoed around him and every time he stepped forward, those nearby moved out of his path like he carried a plague.

One man, trying to avoid getting too close, tripped on a loose stone. "Ugh!" he yelped, falling flat on his back.

Arka looked down at him, then suddenly burst into laughter. "Haha! You're weak and pathetic!" he mocked with a grin.

The man scrambled to his feet and ran off in fear, disappearing into the crowd without looking back.

Arka whistled casually and called his bike with a tap on his watch. The bike came zooming toward him and halted beside him smoothly. He hopped on, slid the earbuds in, and watched as they formed into AR glasses over his eyes.

"Lisa, now we're going to eat something," he said.

[AI CAN'T EAT, DON'T YOU KNOW?] Lisa replied in her usual loud tone.

Arka smirked, "Okay then, I was thinking about feeding you some high-quality battery. But you don't need them, I guess."

[NO! NO! I WANT!] Lisa shouted in panic.

With a chuckle, Arka revved up the bike and shot into the sky, vanishing.

It truly doesn't matter, even if you were the one who planted that stone in me. The past doesn't hold any weight for me. What matters is the present and the future. I'll grow stronger in the now, and one day, everyone will fear my name.