Shin Hin

Frank was trying to resist the strange sensation; there was no way to explain it. It was as if his own body were under the command of the strange voice. At the voice's command, the yellow-haired man felt an imperative need to answer truthfully, but his consciousness fought strongly against the effect. Revealing the truth that he was a "transmigrated" person in this world would lead to consequences he couldn't measure.

"I am..."

The man with slicked-back hair observed him in icy silence as his eyes continued to faintly shine with that white color, waiting for the other's will to finally yield to his strange enchantment. Frank felt that he could no longer resist the other's will; he fell into deep despair, which, if not for the sedative effects of the magic, would have contorted his expression in clear exasperation.

"Shin Hin..."

The words that came out of his mouth surprised Frank himself, who didn't expect such an outcome. The man in the dark blue trench coat would look at him for a few seconds, analyzing him from head to toe, before proceeding to the next question.

"How are you alive? Did you cooperate with the killer?"

Having heard the silver-haired woman, his companion, recount the grim fate of the other corpses, it was truly difficult to imagine how this soldier could have survived in a normal scenario. Again, the slightly drowsy voice replied.

"I don't know. I didn't cooperate with the killer either..."

In part, everything Frank said was true in a way, for he had, in fact, become "Shin Hin" and taken over his body. He also didn't know why he had been transmigrated or why he had been resurrected in this body. He had not cooperated with the mysterious assassin; in fact, he had technically been killed by her.

The man standing in front of Frank didn't quite grasp the situation he was dealing with. Had he escaped the clutches of the assassin? No, it was impossible for a normal person to escape an Enchanter, especially one within the shadow category. Had the Enchanter decided to leave him to pursue those with the magical pattern? It was possible, for after eliminating most people, one lone individual wouldn't be sufficient to hide the trace of the other enchanters, but after eliminating most, it was enough, even potentially leaving a larger number of people alive. Perhaps he served some purpose.

"Sleep."

The man said indifferently, in a relaxed tone, and Frank immediately felt the effects of tiredness intensify to the point where he fell into a deep slumber. Upon this command, he signaled to his attentive companions to approach. They promptly moved to the man's side while observing the sleeping Frank against the tree trunk.

"Liya, can you see anything?"

The silver-haired woman fixed her gaze intently on the sleeping Frank, as if inspecting something that only her eyes could perceive. Soon her eyes ceased emitting that white light and she turned to her companion.

"Despite examining his mana, there's no alteration, not even traces of the tainted mana from the assassin's attack on the others. It's as if he hasn't been touched at all."

"Could it be that she ignored him to focus on finding the magical pattern? After all, if she could reduce the number of people to a minimum, the Enchanters' trace would be easily detected."

"But why only him? It's not as if two or three people would be enough to completely cover the tracks of three enchanters, even if they we're a group with only two to four magical patterns."

"For now, we need to take him back. Den, take care of it."

Liya discussed possible scenarios with the young man, her companion, until their other companion gave the order to return. They realized the case had gaps they couldn't explain, but for now, they had analyzed that Shin wasn't a danger and wasn't a trap set by the assassin. Therefore, they needed to bring him safely back to the City of Cobalt.

***

City of Cobalt, Home of the Hins.

Slowly, Frank's eyes began to open again. Unlike the first time, when the cold sensations consumed his body to the point of waking him due to pain, this time, he felt his body enveloped in a warm sensation with a softness against his back that was very different from the hard and uncomfortable forest floor. A quick glance around the room revealed a modest, windowless room, with a sheathed sword resting in front of him, presumably belonging to Shin.

'This place seems to be Shin's room... I can't remember anything after falling asleep. Was it one of the magics they mentioned? How terrifying... I couldn't even know what was happening..."

Carefully observing his surroundings, he noticed that the place appeared quite orderly, with small notes stuck in various places that he couldn't fully read. His body seemed to have regained the feeling of mobility that he had lost during the interrogation.

Frank brought his gaze down to his hands, so different from his previous body. The feelings that he had previously failed to process were slowly flowing, leaving him with a bitter sensation that he couldn't shake. He felt devastated, but even in this state, he found a glimmer of hope to hold onto.

"In this world, there is magic. Perhaps, just as there's a way to make me transmigrate, there's a way to return me to my world. Listening to the conversation of those mysterious people, it seems there are different types of magic, and from what little I could deduce, there's some sort of hierarchy among the 'Enchanters' based on the number of magical patterns they possess. What we were escorting was three of them. I'm sure they will come back for me. From the way they were talking about us and the little information I have from my memories, this side of the world was a secret to ordinary people, something that only soldiers like Shin could lightly pierce. Perhaps I have a chance to learn magic to help me get back home."

Slowly, the yellow-haired man's face began to regain its light as he found a path to follow in his thoughts. He was unaware of the consequences, but his primary goal was to return home, no matter what it took.

During his reverie, the door to his room would open carefully, causing Frank to shift his gaze to the entrance of the room. Soon, a somewhat younger figure would emerge, with hair almost identical to his, and Frank could swear he was looking at a younger reflection of his own face. Delving into his memories, he knew this was his younger brother.

"Shin, you're awake!"

Chapter end