The vision twisted and blurred, reality shifting like sand slipping through fingers. He wasn’t just watching the past anymore — he was inside it.

The scent of burning incense filled his lungs. The air was thick with smoke and whispers of forgotten prayers. The temple stood before him, grand and ancient, its golden pillars stained with fresh blood.

And then he saw himself.

Not as he was now, but as he had been in his very first life.

A warrior. A king. A betrayer.

His past self stood at the altar, eyes cold, sword dripping with blood.

And kneeling before him —

Her.

His breath caught in his throat.

She looked the same. Exactly the same. Just like in every life before this one.

But this time, she wasn’t his enemy.

She wasn’t a stranger.

She was his wife.

His queen.

And he had driven a sword through her heart.

The Curse Was Never a Punishment. It Was Justice.

“No — “ The word barely escaped his lips.

His past self watched her crumble, eyes devoid of remorse, as if her life had meant nothing.

“Why?” he whispered.

“Why?” The voice of the figure echoed, amused. “Because you were the one who started it all. You broke an oath no mortal should ever break. You killed the one who loved you most.”

The vision shifted again.

Flames engulfed the temple.

A woman stood above his past self’s lifeless body. Not the queen — but someone else.

A priestess.

Her eyes burned with rage, glowing with something inhuman.

“You will suffer, as she has suffered.”

Her voice was both a whisper and a scream.

“You will lose her. Again and again. You will live and die, over and over, only to find her and watch her slip from your grasp.”

She pressed a bloodstained hand against his forehead.

“Until you learn…”

The world shattered.

The Present

His breath hitched as he staggered back into reality. The darkness was gone. The temple, the fire, the priestess — they had vanished.

He was back.

And she was standing before him, staring at him with wide, horrified eyes.

“You… you killed me?”

Her voice was barely a whisper.

He opened his mouth, but no words came.

Because it was true.

A thousand lifetimes spent trying to protect her.

A thousand deaths, a thousand tragedies.

All because, in their first life —

He was the one who had betrayed her first.

Her hands trembled. “Tell me it’s not true.”

But he couldn’t.

Because it was.

And now, the question was no longer whether he could save her.

It was whether she would ever forgive him.