CHAPTER 100: RETURN TO THE BEGINNING

Adrian was finally able to land on the island safely. There was no guard following him and no handler watching his every step.

It seemed they were confident he would not run, convinced that anyone who won the Match would naturally choose to become part of their organization.

A winner was expected to be ambitious and hungry, already shaped into someone who would take on missions without hesitation. If they succeeded, they gained freedom and money. If not, they died.

To Ouroboros, that was the simplest logic in the world.

He inhaled slowly, letting the scent of the ocean fill his lungs. It was strange to breathe air that was not filtered through metal bars or heavy training rooms.

The wind felt fresh, almost unfamiliar, as if freedom itself had a taste he had forgotten.

This beach was where everything began. The memory of the three of them running across the sand rose behind his eyelids, bright and warm, almost painful in its sweetness.

Silas splashing water at him, Lucien laughing, sunlight dancing on their skin. A memory that felt like a dream he could not return to.

He walked toward the manor near the beach. From the shoreline, he already saw its silhouette. When he stood before it, he found nothing surprising.

The place was abandoned, windows cracked from years of neglect, vines crawling through broken frames, the wood long warped by storms. It was a beautiful corpse of what used to be a home.

He let out a faint sigh. He was relieved. He did not know what he would do if Lucero were still living here.

Would he ask for help? Would he hesitate when they looked at him without recognition?

He was glad he did not have to face the answer. The silence of the manor almost felt merciful.

After confirming there were no living occupants except a few raccoons rummaging through the empty rooms, he made his way to the clearing.

It was the cursed place, the one that marked the beginning of their misery. The flowers that once surrounded it had dried out under the weight of autumn, leaving only fragile stems scattered across the dirt.

Adrian stood there quietly as the memories rose again. He kept replaying the tragedy in his mind.

If he had refused to play outside, if he had been stronger, if he had fought harder, would things have been different? Would they still be together?

The only answer was a cold wind brushing past him, making him shiver and causing the healing wounds along his ribs to throb again.

His knees gave out and he lowered himself to the ground. His fingers dug into the dirt, tracing a faint stain that had never truly faded.

It was where he had fallen, bleeding and terrified, a small boy left on the ground like discarded waste.

Tears filled his eyes, warm against the cold air. He tried to hold them back, but they slid down his cheeks anyway.

His voice was barely audible as he whispered, "Lucien, I miss you. I want to hear your voice again. I want you to hug me like before. I want to play with you again like nothing ever changed."

His breath caught in his throat. "Where are you now? Why did you leave us? Why did you abandon us?"

There was no answer, only the quiet ache inside his chest. The pain was sharper than the bruises Marcus gave him, sharper than the knives that cut him during training. It hurt more than any punishment or humiliation.

The thought that they might never be on the same path as Lucien again was a wound without a cure.

He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and forced himself to stand. Silas still believed. Silas still hoped. He could not give up before him.

The only thing he could do on this island was leave a sign. A mark that said they were still alive. A message for Lucien to find someday.

Adrian knelt by a tree in the center of the clearing. His hand trembled as he raised his dagger, but he carved anyway. Three small figures holding each other. Him. Silas. Lucien.

Then beneath it, slowly and carefully, he etched the words:

’Twinster is here.’

A reminder.

A hope.

A promise waiting for the one boy who saved them.

***

"Where are you guys taking me to?"

Lucien’s voice sounded suspicious under the black cloth covering his eyes while the Twinster guided him along.

He could hear their steps, feel the slight pull of Adrian’s hand on his right, and the steady presence of Silas on the other side.

"You aren’t building something weird like a sex dungeon so we can have freaky sex, right?" he asked, already doubtful. With these two, it was never off the table.

"Of course not. Even if your flu is gone, your body is still healing. We won’t force you this time," Silas said from his left, sounding painfully proud of himself for that rare moment of restraint.

Adrian didn’t say anything, but Lucien could practically feel the excitement vibrating through his hand. That alone made him even more wary.

He could smell flowers, and the familiar sweetness told him they had passed the flower fields... yet they kept going. No pause and still no explanation.

"Where are we going, really? You should’ve just covered my eyes while we crossed the flower field. This is too far," Lucien complained.

"Shhh, don’t kill the excitement," Adrian replied, barely containing himself. "I know you’re going to love it."

They finally came to a stop. Fingers worked at the knot behind his head and the cloth slipped away. Light flooded his vision, and he blinked until the world settled into clarity.

When it did, he froze.

There, nestled between two massive trunks wrapped in old vines, stood a tree house. The wood looked fresh but weathered just enough to blend with the forest, and the beams were carved with tiny swirling patterns that unmistakably belonged to Adrian’s impatient hands.

Rope railings circled a small balcony, and warm lanterns hung from the branches above, swaying gently as if greeting him.

A ladder made of uneven planks led upward, clearly Silas’s handiwork; sturdy, practical, built to last through storms.

It looked magical. Like something out of a childhood fantasy he had buried so deep he forgot he once wanted it with his whole heart.

He let out a breathy laugh, wide and disbelieving. "Seriously? A tree house? Just like the one I asked for on my birthday that my father never bothered to give."

He looked at them, eyes bright. "You two actually built this by yourselves?"

"Of course," Adrian said, chest puffed and hands on his waist. "This was our special place while we were waiting for you."

Silas nodded with a softer smile, the kind he only ever showed to Lucien.

"Come on," Adrian said, already tugging him forward. "Let us show you the inside."