I opened my eyes slowly, only for sunlight to stab directly into them. I immediately groaned and raised one hand over my face. God... I felt awful. My entire body felt heavy and sore, but the worst pain came from my shoulder where the dagger had pierced through earlier. Every tiny movement sent another sharp pulse through the muscles there.

"Fuck..." I muttered under my breath.

I had survived worse things before. Back on Earth, pain was practically a roommate at one point. But this? This might actually take the crown.

I slowly lowered my hand and looked around properly.

The room was enormous.

Dark red curtains hung from massive windows that stretched nearly from floor to ceiling, letting golden evening sunlight spill across polished marble floors. The walls were lined with black wooden shelves filled with books, silver ornaments, and paintings of landscapes I didn’t recognize. A fireplace crackled softly near the far wall despite the warmth already inside the room, and expensive-looking carpets covered most of the stone floor beneath it all.

And the bed...

Man, the bed alone was probably bigger than my entire apartment back home.

Thick blankets covered me up to the waist, soft enough that I nearly sank into them completely. Even the pillow beneath my head felt expensive.

Standing beside the bed were two women.

One wore black healer robes embroidered with silver thread. Faint golden magic still glowed around her fingers, meaning she had probably been healing me moments ago.

The other one was impossible not to recognize.

Queen Mia stood beside the bed with both hands folded behind her back. Her long dark-red hair spilled over one shoulder, and despite the bandages hidden beneath parts of her royal clothing, she stood perfectly straight like the attack earlier had barely affected her.

The healer noticed I was awake first.

"Your Majesty," she said softly. "He’s conscious."

The Queen gave a small nod.

The healer bowed respectfully toward her before quietly leaving the room and shutting the door behind herself.

Now it was just me and the Queen.

Well.

That was terrifying.

"Ace," she said after a moment. "What was your surname again?"

"W-Walker."

"Ace Walker," she repeated calmly. "The Crown acknowledges your actions today. Your intervention prevented further harm from reaching my person. For that, you have the kingdom’s gratitude."

I blinked slowly.

"Was that... a thank you?"

"You may interpret it however you wish," she replied without missing a beat.

Yeah. Definitely royalty.

I shifted slightly against the bed and instantly regretted it when pain shot through my shoulder again.

"Yeah... I, uh..." I swallowed. "What happened after I passed out... uh, Your Majesty?"

"Nothing particularly dramatic," she said while crossing her arms. "You lost consciousness. We carried you here."

"The attack?"

The Queen exhaled quietly and walked toward the massive window overlooking the garden below. She stood there with her back turned to me.

"The elf we captured earlier," she said. "It appears he used illusion magic to disguise the situation. He placed himself in false shackles while masking the truth from the guards watching him."

I frowned slightly.

"The guards thought the others restrained him so he couldn’t use magic," she continued. "In reality, he was never imprisoned properly to begin with."

She shook her head once.

"Gods. These little creatures are becoming smarter."

"Ah..." I muttered. "Right..."

Well, what now?

It was obvious I was no longer at the academy or in the dormitory. I was back at the Royal Palace, lying in one of its rooms. I was lucky the Queen had brought me here, the healers in this place were the best in the kingdom, probably. Honestly, I already felt pretty good. Only a dull sting remained in my shoulder.

I swung a leg over the side of the bed, my bare foot touching the cold floor. Groaning, I stood up and rolled my shoulder, testing it. The pain flared up immediately. It seemed even the royal healers couldn’t fix everything.

"Thank you for helping me, Your Majesty," I said. "And for bringing me here."

"The least I could do." The Queen stood by the window, still gazing outside. "I’ll reward you as well. How do you feel?"

"Better already. I think I’m ready to—" 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

The door opened, and Yua stepped in. "Oh, good. Our guest has woken up."

"I... yeah."

"You used spells that shouldn’t be possible for an F-class," the Queen continued, ignoring her attendant. "Tell me, Ace, and be honest. Who are you?"

I rubbed the back of my head while Yua closed the door. How was I supposed to answer that? Tell her I came from another universe? That Ambly just threw me here? I still didn’t even know if it was an accident. Closing my eyes, I could still see the moment I took my final breath back home.

"Just an ordinary guy," I replied. "Your Majesty."

"One of my men, blessed by the God of Death, told me you have many souls swirling around you." She finally turned to face me. "He was terrified when we laid you in this bed. He even advised us to kill you right then and there."

I stayed silent.

"And in the arena," she went on, slowly walking toward me, "you killed without hesitation. Like it was the most natural thing in the world."

Fuck, fuck, fuck. I needed a good lie, and I needed it fast. She owed me for saving her life, but she was still a Queen. She could have me executed on a whim.

"I was a bounty hunter," I lied. "Since I was eight years old. My father and I hunted elves."

"Only a few of those souls were elven." Her expression hardened. "I hate liars, Ace. Tell me the truth. Who are you?"

"I’m no one..." I muttered.

She stopped directly in front of me, barely an arm’s length away. "Who. Are. You?"

Ah, shit. Was there even a believable lie left for me to tell anymore? The whole bounty hunter story with my imaginary father hadn’t even survived for a second. They could see the souls circling around me, could tell the races of the dead at a glance. There was no talking my way out of that.

"I kill people," I admitted at last. "That’s what I do."

The Queen’s expression barely shifted. "Why?"

Why, huh?