"Ah..." Austin gasped as he sat up in bed, his breath shaky.
For a few seconds, he just sat there—eyes wide, chest heaving—until the heavy pressure on his body slowly began to lift.
'System?'
[We have successfully landed in the past. Congratulations, host!]
The system's familiar tone echoed in his mind, but Austin barely registered the words.
A smile crept onto his face as he stumbled toward the mirror. His fingers brushed against the edge, almost as if he needed to feel something solid. Something real.
He remembered the first time he woke up in this world. The very first thing he did was check his reflection.
And there it was again.
A slim, golden-haired young man stared back at him. The broad shoulders, the roughness in his skin—marks of years of relentless training—were gone.
He was...delicate again. Untouched by war. By loss. By regret.
"Haah... all those gains," he joked weakly to himself. But the smile faded as quickly as it came.
