"Tie the goods thoroughly. Make sure they don't fall from the cart."

  "Move quickly."

  "You two eat on time, don't stray away from the merchants, and send a letter when you reach the academy."

  Grandma Rui's words barely reached us through the noise.

  The bustling caravan of merchants was chaotic, filled with the creaking of wooden carts, the low murmurs of traders, and the occasional bray of restless horses.

  A dusty breeze carried the faint aroma of dried spices and hay as everyone hurried about, preparing for departure.

  I glanced at Sia from the corner of my eyes.

  Her silver hair glinted faintly under the morning sun, and her expression remained distant.

  "Do something about her," I signaled to Sia with a subtle gesture.

  Sia raised her eyebrows, feigning innocence, and signaled back, "What can I do? Let her speak; she's worried about us."

  I sighed internally. She had always been the tail stuck at Grandma's behind. I was a fool to think this girl would back me up.

  "Grandma, we need to leave," I said aloud, trying to sound firm.

  The old woman's weathered face crumpled as tears spilled down her cheeks.

  Sighing, I stepped forward and hugged her. Her fragile frame trembled slightly in my arms. Sia followed, her own eyes glistening, though she stubbornly refused to let her tears fall.

  "Stop crying. We are only going away to study. Besides, it's not even confirmed that I will be admitted to the academy."

  "I… I know." Grandma sniffled, dabbing her eyes with the corner of her torn, old apron. "Now go, and make sure you don't skip a meal."

  We exchanged our final goodbyes and climbed into the wagon at the tail end of the merchant caravan.

  Sia sniffled quietly, turning her face away from me.

  I caught her lingering gaze fixed on the village.

  Her eyes were filled with sadness and nostalgia.

  The familiar sight of home, with its weathered rooftops and the faint smoke rising from chimneys, grew smaller as the wagon jolted forward.

  It wasn't easy to leave the place where we had spent sixteen years of our childhood. But we had no choice.

  Sia was about to awaken her Systema.

  If she did not receive formal education and guidance soon, there was a high chance she could self-destruct.

  Me?

  I wasn't awakening anything.

  Systema could be opened by only talented individuals.

  I might be smarter than average, but that was because I was a reincarnator. Nothing else about me was special.

  An extra. That is who I was. And I mean, literally. This was the world of a novel I once read. Let me tell you something, that novel was beyond boring. I didn’t understand why it was so famous.

  What? It got good after 100 chapters? Why would I read if it took so much time to do anything? I dropped it after three chapters, only to be reincarnated as a character in that shitty novel. I had no idea about the plot, I didn’t know where the cheat was, I had no knowledge of the future villains.

  So I did what any sane person would do. I decided to live my life normally. Villains? World-ending threats? The protagonist would deal with all that.

  I rested my head against the wooden frame of the wagon and gazed at the uneven road ahead.

  The rattling wheels provided a rhythmic background to my brooding thoughts.

  'If I knew I was going to be reincarnated, I would've read beyond the first three chapters of that damned novel.'

  'Dammit, how was I supposed to know I would reincarnate in that novel?'

  'Hell, I didn't even gain the memories of my previous life until a few years back.'

  'What sort of useless reincarnation is this?'

  "How much time will it take to reach the academy?"

  Sia's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

  "A month at best, three weeks if we are lucky," I answered. "How are you feeling now?"

  "It's fine. The pain is bearable."

  She pulled up her sleeve, revealing the intricate black pattern etched into her left arm.

  The ominous design, which had been a mere dot last week, now resembled the beginnings of a flower. Its sinister beauty sent a chill down my spine.

  "Your Systema has grown. It shouldn't take more than a few weeks to reach maturity." I added hastily when I noticed her worried expression. "A quick awakening means you have high talent."

  "I know."

  She offered a faint smile before exhaustion took over, and she drifted off to sleep.

  Her peaceful face, framed by her silver locks, was almost ethereal in the dim light of the setting sun.

  I could only smile back.

  She had been worried since the day her Systema appeared and hadn't been able to take a proper rest.

  'This confirms it. She is a heroine,' I thought, studying her delicate features.

  Calling Sia beautiful would be an understatement.

  Her charm was magnetic, capable of silencing even the most boisterous of crowds. There was no way someone like her was not an important character.

  The caravan dropped us at Elodria after fifteen days of travel.

  The sprawling city buzzed with life. Its cobblestone streets were lined with bustling stalls, vivid banners, and a constant hum of activity.

  The vibrant hues of the marketplace were a sharp contrast to the muted tones of the countryside we had left behind.

  We had to take another travel medium and leave the caravan from this city.

  The academy was in the opposite direction of the caravan's destination from here.

  Sia stared at the city in amazement. Her emerald eyes sparkled with excitement. Her lips parted slightly, unable to contain her awe. It was her first time visiting a place with such vibrancy, and her delight was infectious. She pestered me for a tour, her eagerness barely contained.

  When I agreed, she raised her hand and looked at me expectantly, her expression both smug and hopeful.

  "What?"

  "Hold my hand. Don't tell me you don't know how to escort a lady."

  Her tone carried a mix of teasing and mock indignation.

  I barely suppressed the urge to roll my eyes, and the corner of my lips rose into a smirk.

  "Just say that you are afraid of getting lost. Why are you trying to act mature?"

  Sia's smile vanished, replaced by a stony expression. I got a cold shoulder throughout the day after that.

  In hindsight, I should've known better. It was normal for teenagers to act like grown-ups. I had gone through a similar phase in my last life. It was best not to point out when a teenager thought that they knew it all. But I had already made the mistake.

  We had to look for a tavern for the night.

  The golden glow of lanterns lit up the narrow alleys as evening descended. The prices in the better parts of town were high, and we didn't have much leeway with money. After some searching, we settled for a rundown inn in the back alleys.

  "The food tastes good," Sia said while munching on the chicken. Her earlier anger had almost disappeared after the day’s back-breaking effort on my part.

  She savored each bite, her cheeks puffed slightly with food.

  Her delight was expected. The city had more spices and flavors to add to the food. Compared to that, our village was poor, and we could afford only bland food.

  We were given quite an amount of food for a cheap inn. Sia and I did not hold back and ate our fill, relishing the simple pleasure of a hearty meal.

  We entered our room after dinner. The wooden floor creaked underfoot, and the faint smell of old wood filled the small, dimly lit space.

  "Eh? Why are we sleeping together?" Sia exclaimed with a face that was both embarrassed and irritated.

  "Nobody told you to sleep with me. There are two beds here," I replied flatly.

  "Don't do anything weird…"

  "Yeah, yeah."

  I ignored her and claimed the bed near the window. The faint light of the moon filtered through the cracks in the shutters.

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  While Sia was undeniably beautiful, I couldn't bring myself to think of her as more than a sibling, even if we were not related by blood.

  The two of us had spent the majority of our childhood together under Grandma's care, with me often taking care of Sia while Grandma was busy with work.

  The memories of changing Sia's diaper were too vivid to forget.

  Suddenly, a soft blow hit my back.

  I turned around, only to see Sia's pillow thrown at me. Her cheeks were puffed out in an adorable pout, and her narrowed eyes were filled with suspicion.

  "What?"

  "I felt that you were thinking something incredibly rude," she said accusingly. "Out with it."

  "I was worried that my ears might not survive your titanic snoring," I teased, unable to resist.

  "You..! You..!" she spluttered, throwing another pillow at me with all her might.

  I laughed, threw it back at her, and then settled into bed. Maybe it was because I could eat my fill after weeks of journeying, but a wave of deep drowsiness washed over me—

  "...!!!"

  "Let me go! Let me go! Help! Brother!"

  Sia's cries pierced through the veil of sleep like a blade.

  My eyes snapped open, and panic surged through me. I tried to jump to my feet, but the world tilted, making me tumble.

  The room was darker than it had been, and my body felt heavy, lethargic. The pounding headache made it hard to focus.

  "Shit, the brat is awake! Hold him while we take care of the girl!" a gruff voice growled.

  Rough hands grabbed me and pushed me down. I struggled. My muscles were sluggish and unresponsive. A wave of nausea continued to hammer my head, and my thoughts barely formed.

  '...I feel weak. Was there... something in the food?' The realization hit me like a slap.

  Before I could react, a heavy blow struck the back of my head. My vision blurred, and darkness threatened to swallow me whole.

  What brought me back to my senses were Sia's cries. Fear laced her voice as she struggled against the attackers.

  'It… hurts…'

  Something warm and wet trickled down the back of my head. The coppery scent of blood filled my nostrils. A hand shoved my face into the floor.

  "Why did you hit him so hard? We were planning to sell him with the girl!"

  "B-boss, he was overpowering us—"

  "That means he is a healthy product! We could've sold him for a higher price!"

  I forced my eyes open, searching for Sia. My heart sank as I saw her pinned down and her face streaked with tears.

  "Don't harm the girl now! We need her to be in a perfect state to sell her!"

  The rough hands didn't let me move.

  The bandit's hand was holding down my face.

  "S-Sia..?" My voice cracked, barely above a whisper. Her tear-filled gaze turned to me, desperate and pleading.

  Something inside me snapped. My blood ran cold, and an icy fury ignited in my chest.

  I turned my head slightly towards the bandit’s hand holding my head down. My jaw snapped around his thumb, and crushed it, filling my mouth with blood, bone, and cartilage. His agonized scream filled the room, and his grip faltered.

  Seizing the chance, I tackled him, grabbed the knife he dropped, and plunged it into his throat. Warm blood sprayed across my hands as he crumpled to the floor.

  I turned towards Sia. Her eyes were wide with hope. But her expression quickly shifted to horror.

  I followed her gaze, and my world shattered as I saw the sword piercing my chest. Pain exploded through me, and the world turned black—

  "Tie the goods thoroughly. Make sure they don't fall from the cart."

  "Move quickly."

  "You two eat properly, don't stray away from the merchants, and send a letter when you reach the academy."

  Grandma Rui's familiar voice broke through the fog of my mind.

  I blinked, disoriented. Sia stood beside me. Her expression was somber and untouched by the horrors we had just witnessed. The merchant caravan around seemed familiar as they prepared to depart.

  "W-what?" I whispered, my heart pounding.

  I was back. Back to the moment we were about to set off from the village.

  "H-how?"

  My legs wobbled.

  Was it a vision of the future?

  My heart hammered against my chest when everything came back to me.

  The memories were vivid.

  Sia's cries, the blood on my hands, and...

  I was murdered.

  "Sia..." I whispered, my voice trembling as I pulled her into a tight hug.

  Her warmth was a lifeline in the cold sea of despair threatening to drown me. Tears flowed from my eyes like a dam had burst.

  "H-hey, everyone is watching… wait, why are you crying?!"

  Grandma Rui's soft, weathered hands embraced me from behind. Her familiar lavender scent filled my senses.

  "There is no need to be sad," she said gently, her voice breaking slightly. "Don't worry, I will be here for you. You can always return to your home if things don't work at the academy."

  I nodded with difficulty, my throat too tight to respond. The thought of what might have happened to Grandma if she had received news of our deaths was terrifying.

  She wouldn't have been able to handle the shock at her age. Her world would’ve shattered upon knowing the children she raised were killed and sold. No, perhaps she wouldn’t even know what happened to us and keep waiting for a letter from us until she died, believing we had forgotten about her.

  'A second chance.’

  ‘I don't know how I got it, but I won't waste it.'

  After saying our farewells, we departed from the village. The sun painted the horizon in hues of orange and gold, the fading light casting long shadows on the dirt road.

  We had to reach the academy before Sia awakened her Systema. We couldn’t stay in the village even if I wanted to.

  Awakening was dangerous. Those who couldn't handle it had their soul and body burned. Sia would encounter the same fate if we were late to reach the academy.

  "How are you feeling?" Sia asked worriedly.

  The memory of my last moments flashed before me. I clenched my fists, forcing the emotions down. I couldn't let her see me in this state, not when her own life was in danger due to Systema.

  "I'm feeling better. What about your Systema?" I asked, feigning calmness.

  Sia raised her sleeves to show her arm. As we followed the same lighthearted conversation from my past life, the tension eased. Eventually, she fell asleep.

  The tranquility of the moment belied the turmoil within me.

  My mind kept wandering back to the final moments of my previous life. A cold fear gripped my heart.

  I steeled my will and tried to analyze the events.

  'The bandits attacked us inside the inn. They seemed like slave traders from their words.'

  'The inn was helping the bandits.'

  'The food was drugged, and even if it wasn't, Sia's cries should've been enough for someone to hear us and help. But that didn't happen. So the entire tavern was in cahoots with the bandits.’

  Anyone could tell we were country bumpkins. The slave traders must've attacked, knowing we were easy targets.

  Even if we went missing, there was no danger to the slave traders. No one would come looking for us.

  'How can I avoid the slave traders? There's no guarantee another inn would be any better, and we don't have money to stay at high-end inns with better security.'

  The easiest way to solve the issue was not leaving the village.

  But it put Sia’s life in danger.

  The merchant caravan stopped at the city nearest to the village as the evening fell. The lively market bustled with activity, and the air was filled with the scent of roasted chestnuts and freshly baked bread.

  I got an idea when I saw the city.

  "We can just avoid the city where we were attacked," I thought aloud.

  Weeks passed in relative peace, and the time for us to part ways with the merchant caravan approached.

  "Why are we stopping here? Weren't we going to Elodria with the caravan?" Sia’s brows furrowed in confusion.

  "I wanted to take a short tour," I replied nonchalantly. She didn't seem convinced, so I quickly added another excuse. "I just wanted to spend some time with you. If I fail to enter the academy, we won't be able to meet for a few years."

  A flicker of sadness passed through her eyes before she masked it with a smug expression.

  "You don't need to worry. I won't forget a peasant—ahem, childhood friend—just because I entered the academy.”

  Her playful teasing lightened the mood, but I looked away.

  I couldn't forget the look of fear and panic that had once shrouded her face.

  Before searching for an inn, I scouted for a travel medium.

  If there was no direct route from this city to the academy, we'd have to pass through Elodria, which would defeat the purpose of stopping in Ironforge.

  The distance between Ironforge and Elodria was considerable, and the wagons traveling between cities had fixed timings. We needed to buy private wagons if we wanted to travel when we wanted, but we didn’t have that sort of money.

  With public wagons, we would inevitably arrive in Elodria in the evening, forcing us to stay overnight. The only alternative was a route that bypassed Elodria altogether.

  Fortunately, we found a carriage departing for Brighthollow the next day. The city was two stops away from the academy.

  I splurged a bit and booked a room in an average-quality inn with decent security. The dimly lit corridors had sturdy wooden doors, and the presence of armed guards reassured me.

  When night fell, we ate from a bustling street stall.

  'There shouldn't be any problem this time,' I thought, staring at the ceiling of our room in the inn. 'We changed the city and booked a good inn with good security.'

  'We ate from a common stall that serves hundreds of people, so there is no need to worry about being drugged either.'

  The unease in my heart refused to fade.

  I made sure that the window and the door were locked before going to bed.

  The night was eerily quiet, the kind of silence that made the faintest creak feel like a scream. The moonlight spilled through the gaps in the curtains, casting faint, ghostly shadows on the wooden floor.

  We had the same conversation about sharing the room as last time.

  I couldn't fall asleep no matter how much I tried. The tension in my chest didn't allow it. The knife I had brought from the village was held tightly within my grasp with such force that my knuckles turned white.

  Suddenly, the floor creaked.

  My breath hitched. My heart raced like a war drum as I snapped my head toward the noise, and I saw Sia sleepwalking.

  Her face was peaceful, oblivious to my fear. She slipped into my bed, and her small frame curled into mine as she hugged me. A few minutes later, she gradually pushed me off the bed to hoard it for herself with a blissful expression.

  "Brother, hehehee..." she mumbled while drooling in her sleep. Her giggles, innocent, made my chest light.

  "I guess that answers why I was sleeping on the floor last time."

  With a bitter smile, I sat on Sia's empty bed, staring at the ceiling. Fatigue weighed on my eyelids when, suddenly, a sharp pain stung my neck.

  A dart.

  I felt lightheaded within a few seconds. My legs wobbled as the world spun around me.

  Thunderous knocks echoed from the door, each strike making my heart pound harder. Someone was trying to break in.

  "Who is there?" I shouted, my voice cracking with panic.

  My vision blurred as I scanned the room. Whoever threw the dart was inside. But I didn't see anyone else other than me and Sia.

  Sia had been hit by the dart too. Her body was motionless. She did not wake up no matter how much I shook her.

  The knocks grew louder, more violent. Splinters began to fall from the door. It would break soon.

  I forced my trembling body, which was begging to succumb to sleep, to move. My arms dragged the bed, trying to block the door.

  One step.

  Two steps.

  Three—

  "How long are you going to sleep!?"

  I jolted awake as a splash of ice-cold water hit my face.

  A rugged man with a whip loomed over me, his glare as sharp as the sting of his weapon. The dim lighting illuminated his scarred face that was filled with disdain and anger.

  I turned my neck, stiff and aching, to inspect the surroundings. A pungent stench of sweat, urine, and decay filled my nose. My stomach churned. My body felt weak and brittle, like glass on the verge of shattering.

  I was inside a cage.

  And I wasn't alone.

  All around me were men, women, children, and the elderly. Their limbs were chained, and their faces were hollow with despair. Each pair of eyes, those that could muster the strength to open, bore the weight of hopelessness.

  'They were slaves.'

  I realized.

  'We were caught by slave traders again.'

  "Looked enough?"

  The rugged man, the only one unshackled, kicked me in the chest with a force that drove the air from my lungs. Pain bloomed through my ribs as I crumpled to the floor. He continued to kick me, his boots bruising my skin, his lips curled in anger.

  "Dammit, all that trouble for failures like this?"

  "Wh...where is Sia…?"

  My words seemed to enrage him further. His face contorted, and his fist slammed into the side of my head, sending a white-hot pain shooting through my skull.

  "This damn brat! Why did you have to remind me of that bitch!?"

  Warm blood filled my mouth, the metallic tang mixing with the stench around me. The pain was unbearable, worse than any punishment the mercenary who trained me had ever delivered.

  His final kick threw me toward a filthy corner of the cage. The ground was littered with rotting food and decomposing bodies. The smell was suffocating.

  Suddenly, the man smirked.

  He grabbed my hair roughly, yanking my head upward.

  "There, see that?"

  I followed his gaze, my vision blurry from tears and pain. The corpses piled in the corner were in varying stages of decay. The smell of death was an overwhelming mixture of piss, rot, and burnt flesh.

  Among the bodies, my eyes locked onto one.

  A charred corpse, burnt beyond recognition.

  Burned.

  I froze.

  Those who couldn't handle the awakening of Systema would have their soul and body burned.

  My mind raced, frantically searching for something, anything, that said the corpse wasn't hers.

  But the floral pattern on her arm—the Systema—was unmistakable.

  "Sia…?"

  My voice broke as the realization hit me like a thunderclap. My chest heaved, and tears streamed down my face as my mind shattered under the weight of the truth.

  The slave trader chuckled, watching my state. His chuckles turned into hearty laughter. I charged at the man in a blind frenzy, every ounce of pain replaced by raw, unfiltered rage.

  He punched me in the chest. Something cracked.

  "Well fuck, I guess it's fine. He wasn't worth as much as his sister anyway. At least he made me laugh—"

  Darkness swallowed me whole.

  "Tie the goods thoroughly. Make sure they don't fall from the cart."

  "Move quickly."

  "You two eat properly, don't stray away from the merchants, and send a letter when you reach the academy."

  I was back to the past.

  For the second time.