Before Klein could respond, Azik, staring into the depths of the mausoleum, continued on his own: "I remembered what it was like the first time I died and came back to life. I was lying among a pile of pale corpses, and I staggered to my feet, terrified, not knowing what had happened or where I was.
"Before the church members could collect the bodies for purification, I stumbled away from there, wandering like a ghost through wastelands, villages, and cities, unable to remember who I was or where I came from.
"During that time, no matter where I went, I could hear countless cries and see priests conducting numerous burial rites. Grief seemed to pervade every corner.
"Later, I accidentally rescued a noble girl and entered her family's manor. She was a bright and cheerful girl, while I was like a beast emerging from the forest—sensitive, suspicious, insecure, fearful, yet often displaying a side that was cold, indifferent, cruel, and not in line with human morality.
"She was very curious about me. No matter how I avoided her or what bad things I did, she would approach me, infect me with her smile, and influence me with interesting things. Unconsciously, I got used to her antics and her presence.
"We quietly got together. She was worried, afraid her father wouldn't agree to her marrying a former vagrant turned servant.
"Seeing her sad smile, I felt my blood boil for the first time. I impulsively told her I would leave this place but would return with a title and a ring for my bride.
"I joined the army, became a knight, charged at the enemy with a three-meter lance, and amid the remnants of chaos in the Northern Continent at the end of the Fourth Epoch, I became a baron with my own fief.
"I kept my promise and married my bride, carrying the king's decree, the family crest, the knight's sash, and the ring I had made myself."
With these words, Azik's expression gradually softened, as if savoring and reminiscing about something. Even the corners of his mouth unconsciously lifted.
Klein's heart stirred; he seemed to see the familiar Mr. Azik again.
"What happened next?" he cautiously prompted.
Azik looked ahead and said: "Next... Next, we built a castle on our fief, and we had a child—a boy. He grew quickly, and it was foreseeable that he would become tall and sturdy.
"He loved combat, always dragging a broadsword around and running about, saying he wanted to become a knight.
"I thought it was just a child's fleeting interest, hard to maintain, but even when he scraped his leg or knocked his head, he never gave up training. He thought that if he hid in his room, face twisted in pain, covering his wounds, I wouldn't notice. Hah, he underestimated his father—all the spirits of the fief secretly serve me.
"As the years passed, I recovered more and more memories. My wife kept complaining that the castle was too gloomy and wanted to go to sunny, warm places. I granted her wish, but only much later did I understand that she didn't dislike living in the castle—she was afraid of the changes slowly happening in me, afraid of the increasingly cold and unfamiliar person I was becoming.
"She never told me these things and continued to treat me as before. We had a wonderful life by the southern seaside, and even wanted another child, but we weren't successful.
"Only when I sensed that my next death was approaching did we return to the fief, return to the castle.
"My eldest son, that boy, told me he wanted to go to
"I asked him why he wanted to make such a choice at the age of just over ten. He replied that because I was his idol and role model, he wanted to become a knight and a noble by his own efforts, like I did, not relying on his parents.
"By that time, I had recovered most of my memories and always felt a bit awkward, distant, and uncomfortable with this child, but when I heard his answer, I still felt an indescribable joy, satisfaction, and pride. This was my child, completely different from the descendants I left behind in the Balam Empire."
Klein knew that Mr. Azik was referring to his identity as the "first Baron of Lamud," and that child who had brought him pride and satisfaction was poisoned, murdered, and nailed into a coffin in his old age or middle age, and even his skull was taken by
Azik's gaze grew vacant, and he continued: "I died again, woke up in a daze, and instinctively moved away from the fief. Following a prearranged plan, I wandered off to other places. In each life, in the early part, I experienced a different life. Sometimes I encountered sweet love, sometimes I had a beloved daughter. That sincere affection, helplessness, and satisfaction repeatedly left me, gradually regaining my memories, bewildered, confused, and conflicted.
"Once, I was a filial son, bringing my parents pride, a good life, and lovely grandchildren. But when I 'woke up' and found myself, I remembered that at the end of my previous life, I had ignored the death of their real son on the battlefield and taken over his identity. On one hand, I felt pain and guilt, but on the other, I thought it was nothing, a trivial matter. It was as if my heart had split into two people.
"At that time, I had a mask that could turn me into anyone, but after one awakening, I lost it. Perhaps I deliberately got rid of it..."
Klein remembered the daughter Mr. Azik had mentioned who liked to ask him for fruit. He weighed his words and began: