Immortals From My Past Life Are Still Obsessed With the Reincarnated Me

12 – Trial of Fear (2)

Joseph clutched his head and opened his eyes.

Feel soft and moist all over the body.

After breaking through his fog and recovering from his ordeal, Joseph lay down on the damp lawn.

“Where is it?”

My head was dizzy, probably because the aftermath of the fantasy magic hadn’t gone away yet, but I was able to sit on the lawn and look around.

And Joseph muttered to himself with his eyes wide open at the embarrassing sight unfolding before him.

“You mean they are all going through trials right now?”

People were lying all over the lawn around him, as if he was suffering from fantasy magic and struggling to break through the ordeal.

It was no different from sleeping peacefully with no wounds on his body, but perhaps because of the fantasy he had just experienced, they all looked like corpses, which made Joseph feel terrified for no reason.

Wouldn’t it be a big deal if someone had a bad heart in such a defenseless situation?

“You have overcome the ordeal.”

At that moment, someone came to Josef who came to his senses.

Coincidentally, he was also the person who answered the question that Deneb had just had.

Joseph tilted his head at the unfamiliar face, but soon he remembered where he had seen him.

“Ah, that guard… ….”

“Yes, I am responsible for guiding the awakened students here. If you follow the road over there, you will come to the dormitory, so you can get a room after being guided. Have a good school life.”

A stone statue of a lion with wings that appeared as the fog spread and a barrier was formed.

At the same time, the main gate guards, who had disappeared at the same time, were now in charge of protecting the students who were losing their minds and going through trials inside.

Looking in the direction the guard was pointing at, I saw a building at the end of the road that was not as good as the Imperial Palace, but still quite grand.

‘Is that a dormitory?’

Only then did he realize that he had overcome the ordeal, and feeling a sense of accomplishment, Joseph looked around once more.

As expected, all of them except for Joseph still looked like they were in a coma.

So Joseph, who had a little bit of anticipation at the same time, cleared his throat a few times and then spoke as if he were on guard.

“Am I the first student to wake up?”

“Yes?”

“So, is this body the first to break through the ordeal?”

No matter what the event is, if you are a member of the royal family, you must stand at the forefront.

In terms of experience, it seems that I have broken through quickly in my own way, so I have a feeling of anticipation.

But ruthlessly, the guard shook his head insincerely.

“You broke through very quickly, but you are not number one. There may be subtle differences, but I think it will be around 3rd place.”

“Third place? Aha, you know who it is.”

Josef wondered who broke through before him, but he could tell if he thought about it for a second.

I had only taken a few steps along the path pointed by the guard, and I saw a scene of a man and a woman sitting side by side on a bench along the way.

Seeing Joseph, the simple commoner girl hiccupped in amazement, and the boy with a somewhat drowsy face greeted him smirkingly.

It was Deneb and Charlotte who greeted Joseph as if they had been waiting.

“I can’t believe it, Sir Deneb. Just in case, it was you.”

“There is also Charlotte.”

Hey, she didn’t know much about Charlotte, but if she was Deneb, it wasn’t strange that she woke up before him, Joseph thought.

Although there is a saying, “Cheongchuleoram,” It didn’t seem to be used between Deneb and Joseph.

Joseph gladly joined Deneb and Charlotte’s meeting.

“I think the three of us can use the best room. Wahahahaha!”

“That’s right. They say that the first few people can have a single room with the most luxurious facilities, but I was lucky.”

“Um, yes. But now that we’re in the academy, and we’re both the same age, why don’t we throw away that formal tone?”

“Is that so?”

She was a little taken aback by Deneb’s answer, who accepted it without a single refusal, but as she headed to the dorms, she convinced herself that it was better to be comfortable talking about this and that.

In the meantime, Joseph suddenly wondered what kind of ordeal Deneb must have been through.

It’s because Deneb, whom he has known since childhood, is afraid of something.

“But Deneb, what did you face in the Ordeal of Terror?”

“Oh, are you asking me?”

“Then, who else is there besides you? You can’t even ask her lady what she’s afraid of.”

Joseph anticipated Deneb’s reaction.

It’s like nothing came out because there’s nothing scary, or it’s just that it’s just made up because it doesn’t want to reveal its weakness, or it’s nothing special…….

However, Deneb reacted differently than Joseph had expected.

“Well, I can’t tell.”

“Hmm, is that so? Then I won’t bother asking.”

A very bitter smile appeared on Deneb’s face as he tried to answer calmly, perhaps recalling something he had seen in the ordeal.

***

My feet do not come off. Lips do not move. I can’t breathe.

But this is clearly an illusion.

“Keukssuk… !”

The moment I put my foot down to follow Justina and couldn’t move forward at all, I realized that this was something I was afraid of.

A fact that I didn’t even know until this moment came.

Unconsciously, I was afraid of Justina.

‘No… That’s not exactly it.’

I blankly followed Justina’s back as she walked away.

It was the same no matter how fast she walked or when she sprinted so that her whole body was drained of strength because she couldn’t run.

Justina is obviously walking slowly, but she hasn’t closed the distance between her and me.

Only then did I realize exactly what I was afraid of.

‘I thought that as long as I found Justina, Leewin, or Elfin, I could always return home as harmoniously as I did back then.’

What happens after you find it is the next problem.

For me, finding them was an urgent priority.

However, I firmly believed that I would find it someday.

There were often days when I was worried that I might not be able to find it, but it was unreasonable to dismiss it as a feeling of fear.

In the end, all I cared about was finding three girls: Leewin, Elfin, and Justina.

So naturally, after I found it, I ruled out what to do, but this damn fantasy kindly reminded me of that.

‘After finding it?’

What can I say?

Actually, I was with you guys about 500 years ago… So I’ve been with him for about 10 years, should I ask him if he remembers?

What if I don’t remember?

Even if I only remember one thing, how can I prove that I am the Dane of that time?

Who in this world would believe in reincarnation, a wild superstition that only appears in old novels?

The more I think about it, the more I fall into a labyrinth.

If you have an attitude that you won’t believe me even if I try to unpack the memories of the past one by one in order to prove that you are me, then in the end you will never believe me.

Even if I concede a hundred times and convince them that everything went well and that I was reincarnated, would I be able to get along with them?

To me, that period was only 17 years ago, but to Liwin, Justina, and Elfin, it was over 500 years ago.

Maybe I am a person from the past that has already been buried in my memory.

I am more confused than happy to see that human come back alive.

“…… Ah.”

I raised my head again and let out a sigh.

No longer was Justina walking in front of me.

Liwin, who had grown into a full-fledged adult woman, and Elfin, who had grown up and had a sword strapped to her back, were walking side by side.

I really don’t know if it’s like that now. Everything is just an illusion created by the combination of thoughts and trials in my head.

‘…… I can’t overcome it.’

I realized as I walked behind three girls walking side by side.

I can’t catch up with them even if I walk on infinite time.

I remembered the story of a runner who started late in a running match and couldn’t catch up with a tortoise who started first.

Maybe the runner was just afraid to stand next to the turtle.

If I couldn’t overcome the illusion, I had no choice but to destroy it.

“The fantasy is over.”

I murmured softly, reawakening my senses that I had deliberately kept quiet for a while to cast an illusion spell on.

The scenery surrounding the hut disappears piece by piece and shatters, returning to darkness.

Liwin, Elfin, and Justina, who failed to form dolls and remained as fragments of light, also turn to dust and fly away.

All that remains is a pitch-black space.

I couldn’t overcome my fear.

Instead, I chose to destroy the illusion magic itself.

The darkness that enveloped me slowly disappeared as if a fog had lifted, and my five senses were returning to normal.

Vision, hearing, and tactile sensations begin to wriggle first. After that comes the sense of smell and taste.

You can see the lawn, hear the quiet chirping of birds and the occasional scream of students, and the cool breeze tickles your face.

Ignoring the startled guards who were still checking the students entering the barrier, I staggered to my feet.

“Ha, student? Could it be that you have already finished the ordeal?”

“… ….”

I didn’t answer. Because I didn’t know how to answer.

If I had asked him if he had overcome the ordeal, he would have shook his head saying he hadn’t.

However, saying that the ordeal was over was too ambiguous.

“I can’t believe it. I’ve been doing security work here for 10 years, but I’ve never seen anything like this…….”

“What’s up?”

Leaving me standing blankly, the guards gathered one by one and started holding a serious meeting.

“I’m sure it was properly enchanted, but what happened?”

“I don’t know. It’s not even a special race.”

“First, verify your identity… You are Deneb Rehinar, the youngest son of the Rehinar family, right?”

“Yes.”

After that, they talked some more.

Not a single student finished the ordeal, but there were still many students who were breaking through the barriers and taking steps to challenge the ordeal.

In fact, a situation where a student finished immediately after starting.

The reaction of the guards who investigated whether the magic was not applied at all due to some error was also not strange.

“Confirmation complete. Student Deneb Rehinaar passed the test first among first-year freshmen, the shortest record among freshmen…….”

The guard’s mouth slowly opened as if he couldn’t believe it, then he closed it again and continued.

“You can follow this road all the way. Since you finished the ordeal first, you should be able to choose any room.”

“Can I wait for someone?”

“Yes? Well, if you do, the player may be taken away by someone else, so why don’t you go first and wait?”

I shook my head at the guard’s words.

“He will wake up soon. I’ll wait a minute.”

“Yes, then… There are no regulatory issues.”

After getting permission, I sat down on the lawn and stared blankly at the sky. After a while, I held Charlotte’s hand as she stood up on her forehead.

“Ugh, boy. After all, you were up first.”

“Is the servant behind the master?”

“Sorry, sorry… ….”

While apologizing, Charlotte smiled faintly.

When she saw that, she suddenly became curious, so I asked Charlotte what she had encountered in her ordeal.

“What were you afraid of? Could it be that my older sister or I didn’t come out?”

“That can’t be, hehehe… ….”

Charlotte hesitated and glanced at me, then whispered softly.

“Can’t we keep it a secret… ?”

I didn’t mean to pry, so I nodded.

I thought that if I left Josef while we were walking together toward the dormitory, there would be an aftertaste, so I sat on a bench and waited.

I soon arrived at Joseph, and the three of us who woke up after the ordeal were the first to arrive at the dormitory.

‘If we meet…… After that, how?’

But even then, unresolved questions still remained in my heart.

***

Meanwhile, the deepest part of Denbergen Academy.

The towering Director’s Tower exists not just to look down, but to see everything in Denbergen.

Students in Denbergen, Buildings in Denbergen, Teachers in Denbergen.

And right in that tower, there is the director’s office of Denbergen Academy, which no one can access without permission and only a very few people are allowed to enter.

[List of students enrolled in the 327th class]

A white-haired woman who is the owner of the place and also the owner of the whole academy.

She carefully picked up the thick folder with the moonlight streaming through her window.

She was just paperwork needed for work, but for some reason she looked excited like a child receiving her birthday present.

Sereuk- Seruk-

She began to turn her page slowly with her trembling hands.

She perused documents with dozens or even hundreds of names written on them.

I hope that there might be a name like that, but no matter how hard it is, such a coincidence is unlikely to happen.

“Because it is a human habit for parents to name themselves…….”

The director of Denbergen sighs as if he is not human.

As she scans the white paper, her slender fingers stop for a moment at the name ‘Denev Rehinar’.

The first letter of the name was the same as the person I was looking for, so it wasn’t an absurd reason.

It’s just that today she heard a report that a boy named Deneb Leh Nar had defeated her fantasy magic that she had installed in the shortest time possible.

“Huh, if she hadn’t looked after her and showed her sincerity, she would have been trembling without even making a sound. But, well, you’re doing quite well for a human.”

Thanks to the solitude, the self-talk that I have become accustomed to does not leave my mouth.

Illusion magic was originally a barrier installed with the idea that you could find ‘that person’ among freshmen who broke through with excellent senses.

However, at some point, there were too many people who could easily break through, so I didn’t even expect that this barrier would screen them out anymore.

“Anyway, the year 327… ….”

Three-digit numbers are chewed in the mouth.

300 Years have passed, so there’s no way that person is still alive.

If he had still foolishly believed that man would be alive, he would have built a sanatorium, not an academy.

If that person comes back one day, he will most likely be a child not even twenty.

I can’t stand it because I’m looking forward to the day when I tease her as a kid and call her older sister.

Chairman burst into laughter alone and looked out the window again.

“…… What, can you still wait another thousand years?”

Justina, a young dragon who loves romance, is still waiting, firmly believing that Dane will be reincarnated like in a fairy tale.

It was an academy built for that purpose, and a dream he inherited for him.