While floating in endless darkness with a troubled mind and heart, he awaited his new life. For Chris, finding certainty about what had happened was hard and challenging, but even if all these events were a dream, Chris would prefer to immerse himself in the most beautiful dream in the world rather than return to a reality where he had lost everything. "I hope I get a chance to make amends."
Chris had been in that boundless darkness for an immeasurably long time. He constantly wondered how he should face his new family. Should he be a good and kind child who devotes all his attention to them, or a sociable and eloquent person capable of captivating anyone? Chris's endless mental preoccupations flowed like the darkness surrounding him until a brief spark ignited in his mind. That spark was none other than X. Chris wondered what an omnipotent god could possibly want from an ordinary, powerless human like him. This question occupied his mind for a long time until, suddenly, a light appeared within the darkness. At first, its nature was unclear, but in Chris's situation, that light was nothing less than a second chance to make everything right—a chance to do all the things he had avoided in his previous life.
The light shone upon the darkness and his eyes like a radiant sun, a gateway to a new world.
With every passing moment, Chris's anxiety surged. Unaware of what awaited him, he adjusted his hair and appearance, assuming he would immediately encounter his new life. Little did he know that X and fate had other plans for him. As he drew closer to the source of the light, a strange and indescribable pain overtook him—a pain that pressed against his entire body and every bone. His eyes felt as though they were bulging out of their sockets, and the agony crushing his skull threatened to pulverize his brain. Writhing in torment, Chris scratched at his body with his nails amid continuous screams, but not only did the endless pain persist, it intensified with each passing moment, introducing new stages of suffering. "What's happening?"
His screams continued until, suddenly, everything fell silent for a brief moment.
Chris entered the source of the light, and soon after, more lights began to appear. A liquid that stung his eyes and blurred his vision poured over them, and before long, his screams turned into the soft whimpers and cries typical of a newborn baby. Indistinct sounds began to murmur in a language Chris had never heard in his life, yet somehow he could understand it. His heartbeat quickened in sync with the events around him. He tried to wipe his eyes with his hands to see the source of the sounds or catch a glimpse of something, but he soon realized he couldn't even move his hands. Chris could no longer speak either—his tongue wouldn't obey him. Overwhelmed with fear, he closed his eyes and wished to enter the dream he had been longing for. "Please, if this is a nightmare, let it end soon."
Hoping to step into a beautiful dream, Chris instead entered a nightmare that felt like torture—or at least, that's what he thought.
Some time passed until the lights turned into images and the indistinct sounds into words. Through the burning liquid that obscured his vision, Chris saw a woman. At first, he couldn't make out her face clearly, but after a few moments, her features began to emerge. She was a beautiful woman with white hair and pale skin, her skin soft and her hands warm—hands that Chris could feel beneath his knees and neck. The sensation was strange yet comforting. But behind that sense of calm, Chris suddenly faced something bizarre and terrifying. He found her smile and face beautiful, but what horrified him were her eyes. They were like those of a feline—slitted pupils, black, with irises of deep blue. His heartbeat raced wildly upon seeing those frightening eyes. He wanted to scream, but only faint whimpers escaped his throat. It didn't take long for Chris to notice his own body—he had been reborn as an infant, a baby with white hair and silver eyes, eyes just like the woman's. Struggling to breathe from sheer terror, he was distracted by the sounds around him. He heard a young woman's voice, soft and delicate, congratulating another woman in a humble and formal tone: "Congratulations, my lady. It's a healthy, beautiful boy."
"William, do you see? Our child is a boy!"
On the other side stood a tall man with long red hair, a rugged face, and eyes of crimson. He wore a glossy red leather outfit and a long red-and-black coat that reached near his knees. Upon seeing Chris, the man approached and, after a moment, cradled him in his arms. His skin was sun-tanned, his hands rough yet warm. Seeing the man's smiling face, Chris reached out with his tiny hands but couldn't touch him. The man gently caressed Chris's cheek with a single finger and said, "He looks so much like him, Maria! Our son looks so much like your brother."
Maria, Chris's mother, smiled with a hint of sadness and gently took her husband's hands. They gazed at each other for a moment, their deep looks suggesting a long story behind them, before falling silent. Then, with her beautiful voice and a kind tone, Maria said, "Then let's name him Rio—in memory of my brother and the great sacrifice he made."
William smiled, stroking his wife's face, and replied, "Then his name will be Rio."
Now reborn as Rio in this new world, Chris looked around. He was in a grand, opulent room adorned with decorative items and marble pillars. His parents, William and Maria, stood by his side. To him, everything still felt like a blend of dream and nightmare. Chris didn't know whether to believe the events unfolding around him. The strange eyes of his parents unnerved him until he suddenly caught his reflection in a mirror affixed to the wall. Born with silver eyes and hair as white as snow, he had skin as pale as clouds and a face like an angel's. Still reeling from the shock of his surroundings, Chris tried to turn his neck to look around but failed—he was a newborn, unable to even move his fingers properly. "What on earth has happened to me?"
In the corner of the room hung a large golden portrait of the Rio family. Beside it, Chris saw three girls—two tall ones with red hair like their father's, and a shorter one standing apart. Staring at them for a moment, he was startled when Maria smiled and reached out toward them. "Girls, come say hello to your brother."
Hearing those words sent a strange, indescribable shock through Chris. In this second life, he was no longer alone. He didn't know how to react in his physically helpless state, but if he could move, he'd have smiled and hugged his sisters tightly. "Does this mean I'm not alone anymore?"
Two of his sisters, Adrianna and Setya, approached their newborn brother at their mother's call. Adrianna had short, boyish hair and a scar stretching from her neck upward, her face cold and her red eyes terrifying as they fixed on Chris. In contrast, Setya, with long white braided hair reaching her knees, had a cute and cheerful expression. As they drew near, they began to speak.
Adrianna, in a cold yet respectful tone, said, "Welcome to the family, brother."
Setya, trying to sound cool and impressive, smirked proudly and added, "Now you're the youngest in this family, little brother—and I'm older than you."
Overjoyed, Chris tried to wave at his sisters. Instead of fear, he was so happy that he barely registered their words. All he wanted was to touch them, to confirm they were real. But then his eyes fell on his third sister, standing apart. With wild, long hair and frightening eyes, she stared at him with nothing but rage—an anger so palpable Chris could feel its heavy shadow over him. He wasn't sure why she looked at him that way or why she didn't approach, but seeing his parents' disappointed glances at each other, he realized something was happening that he didn't yet understand. Before he could piece together more about his new life, the newborn Chris drifted into a deep sleep.
A day later, Chris awoke in the middle of the night, his sleepy eyes slowly opening as he began to take in his surroundings with confusion. He lay in a red cradle within a large room filled with luxurious wooden furniture. Paintings of dragons adorned the ceiling, drawn with such precision and detail that they caught his attention. The sight surprised him, but what shook him more was the environment. It seemed he'd been born into a world devoid of modern technology. Chris, a sharp-minded individual, could easily tell he was in a primitive realm—evident from his family's simple yet silken clothing. But there was something else: his eyes. He still couldn't grasp the nature of himself or his new family. Why did he have feline-like eyes? It gnawed at him. "Could I have become some kind of mutated human?"
As childish thoughts swirled in his mind, a pair of red eyes stared at him from the room's darkness.
Soon, someone emerged from the absolute shadows—it was his third sister, Nadia Kalimor. Dressed in a red silken gown, her hands clasped behind her back, she approached her newborn brother with slow steps and still-furious eyes. Without a word, she stared at him. Chris, puzzled, gazed back. He didn't understand her looks; all he could sense was her anger. Confused, he tried to get her attention by waving his hands, but her only response was a single sentence: "The greatest dragon in the world? What a joke."
Stunned, Chris thought to himself, "Dragon? Those mythical creatures from stories? What is she talking about?"
Lost in thought, Chris glanced out the window beside his cradle and saw something unbelievable—an enormous dragon with large red wings soaring in the sky not far from him. Terrified, he didn't even realize whether he fainted or fell asleep afterward.
Days passed as Chris spent time in his room, piecing together his surroundings through his mother's words and the daily chatter of the servants caring for him. He had been born into the Kalimor clan, part of the Sun Dragons tribe on a floating island high above the earth's surface. Contrary to his expectations, the Sun Dragons resembled humans, raising questions in his mind—questions that remained unanswered even after days.
The Sun tribe consisted of five hundred dragons who had built a small city on the floating island. They were master architects; Chris lived in a palace of marble and towering pillars, the kind he'd only seen in history books from his past life.
A week after his rebirth in the world of X, Chris, still struggling to gain control of his movements, rocked in his cradle. He was alone for a while until the large golden wooden doors of his room swung open. His mother entered with two servants and a mysterious woman. Seeing him, Maria rushed to scoop him up, showering him with kisses and caresses while the stranger watched from afar. The woman wore a long black dress, her fingers painted gold, and her dragon-like red eyes glinted. With red hair and black lips, she smiled at Chris for a moment before approaching slowly with Maria's permission. Chris tensed, resisting her touch, but his mother's soothing embrace and smile calmed him enough to allow it. The woman introduced herself as Olivia, stroking his cheek as she said, "I'm honored to meet you, Lord Rio. I've come today to determine your identity."
Maria smirked at Olivia's words and replied, "Olivia, you're talking as if my son can understand you!"
Olivia bowed her head respectfully and said, "I'm certain Lord Rio can comprehend us and his surroundings as much as he needs to—right, young lord?"
Chris was shocked, sensing Olivia might know something. He tried to avert his gaze, but she was there to uncover what she called his "identity."
At Maria's request, she placed Chris back in his cradle and stepped back with a worried look. Olivia then placed her hands on Chris's forehead and closed her eyes. To Chris, it was all a mystery until her hands began to glow with a green light, startling him. But the fear didn't last—he soon lost consciousness and fell into a deep sleep.
Moments later, Olivia opened her eyes in a boundless white space with no beginning or end. Slightly puzzled, she began walking and examining her surroundings. "A white space? That's a bit odd for a dragon."
Olivia was the "Seer" of the Sun tribe, able to discern the identity of newborns by connecting her mind to their essence, identifying their dragon species. In the dragon world, there were various kinds: the fiery red dragons, sky dragons, mountain dragons, and dark dragons.
Olivia wandered through the endless mental space of Chris, calling out his name in hopes of finding a trace of him. To her surprise, the only sound was the echo of her own voice.
"I've seen many empty spaces, but this one's strange. It's clear Lord Rio will be calm and emotionless like his sister Adrianna, but why is it so cold here?"
She pondered for a moment before continuing, "Cold air! Now that I think about it, the temperature in Lord Rio's room was low too. What's going on?"
Lost in thought, Olivia suddenly noticed thick fog and mist surrounding her. She stepped back in fear and urgency, but it was too late—she was trapped in the freezing haze. After struggling, she tried to sever her connection to Chris but, to her terror, found herself unable. Screaming in panic, she called out, "Please calm down, Lord Rio! I mean you no harm. Just show yourself!"
Soon, in a horrifying turn, her body began to freeze. Before she could react, she found herself encased in ice, screaming in pain until enormous blue dragon eyes emerged from the mist, staring at her. One glance was enough for Olivia, the experienced Seer of the Sun tribe, to realize what she faced.
"My God… He is a devil."