Darkness.
Not the suffocating kind.
Not the endless abyss he should have known—
Just… absence.
Then—
Light.
Azriah's eyes opened slowly.
No rush.
No panic.
Just awareness settling in, piece by piece.
A ceiling.
White.
Too clean.
Too… empty.
He blinked once.
Then again.
His body felt… light.
Unfamiliar.
But functional.
"…So this is what it feels like."
His voice came out quiet.
Smooth.
Almost too steady for someone who had just woken up.
He sat up slowly, his crimson gaze drifting across the chamber.
Bare walls.
No decorations.
No windows.
No meaning.
An empty room.
Just like him.
He raised his hand, studying it.
Pale.
Unblemished.
Perfect.
"…Strange."
It should have felt like his.
It didn't.
Something stirred in the back of his mind.
A fragment.
A memory.
A woman.
Warm.
Gentle.
Smiling.
"…Esther."
The name slipped from his lips before he could stop it.
A faint ache followed.
Not pain.
Just… something missing.
"I was talking to her."
His brows knit slightly.
"…She said something."
A pause.
"…A farewell?"
Silence.
He tried to reach further.
Dig deeper.
But—
Nothing.
A wall.
Thick.
Cold.
Unmoving.
"…That's annoying."
Before he could dwell on it further—
The air shifted.
The door opened.
Footsteps.
Multiple.
Measured.
Cautious.
Azriah didn't turn immediately.
He already knew they were there.
"…You're awake."
A voice.
Calm.
Observing.
Now he turned.
Figures in white cloaks.
Several of them.
Watching him like he was something to be dissected.
He didn't feel threatened.
Just… curious.
"…Who are you?" one of them asked.
Another stepped forward quickly.
"No—start simple."
They were nervous.
He could tell.
Even if he didn't understand why.
"…Do you remember your name?"
Azriah tilted his head slightly.
For a moment—
There was nothing.
Just silence.
Then—
"…Noah."
The word slipped out.
Soft.
Uncertain.
The researchers froze.
"…What did you say?" one of them asked quickly.
Azriah blinked.
"…Noah."
He repeated it.
This time more firmly.
Something about it felt… right.
Not complete.
But familiar.
The researchers exchanged sharp glances.
"Record that."
"Unexpected memory retention—"
"Is that his original identity?"
"…Do you remember the name Azriah?" another asked.
Azriah frowned slightly.
"…No."
That answer sent a ripple through the room.
"…Interesting," Cedric muttered. "The ego stabilized around a different identity…"
"Residual memory imprint?" another suggested.
"Or something deeper…"
Azriah watched them quietly.
"…Is Noah not my name?" he asked.
"Do you remember who you are?"
A pause.
He thought about it.
Carefully.
"…I'm a human."
The answer felt right.
Incomplete.
But right.
"And before this? Anything else?" another pressed.
"Memories? Locations? Events?"
Azriah's gaze drifted slightly.
Searching.
Darkness.
Chains.
Something vast.
Something watching—
Nothing.
"…No."
"…Think harder," one of them said, voice tightening.
"Where were you before this?"
"…I don't know."
That answer didn't satisfy them.
He could tell.
"…Anyone you remember?" the first asked again.
"Any person."
A pause.
Then—
"…Esther."
The name lingered.
"…Who is Esther?" the man asked immediately.
"…I don't know."
That made his own expression shift slightly.
Not confusion.
Not frustration.
Just… awareness.
"She was there," he added quietly.
"…And then she wasn't."
Silence filled the room.
The researchers exchanged glances.
Tension.
Excitement.
Concern.
"…Subject memory is fragmented," one whispered.
"Core identity intact. External data… unstable."
Another stepped forward.
"…Do you know how old you are?"
Azriah blinked once.
"…No."
"You are fourteen." suddenly one of them said.
That meant nothing to him.
Still—
He nodded.
"…And this place?" he asked.
A brief hesitation.
Then—
"You are currently in a research facility."
A pause.
"…As a subject."
Azriah stared at him.
Not offended.
Not angry.
"…I see."
And strangely—
He meant it.
Because none of them actually knew.
Before they could push further—
The air shifted.
And she walked in.
Asta.
Her presence silenced the room instantly.
Her crimson eyes swept across the researchers before settling on him.
"…So," she said softly.
"…you've woken up."
Azriah met her gaze.
Unflinching.
"…Who are you?" he asked.
She stepped closer.
Each step deliberate.
Controlled.
"…Your mother." and she asked "What is your name?"
A pause.
"…My name is Noah," he said.
For the first time—
Asta stopped.
Not in surprise.
Not in confusion.
In interest.
"…Noah," she repeated quietly.
Testing the name.
Weighing it.
Then—
She smiled.
Faint.
Sharp.
"…That name is no longer yours."
The room grew still.
She stepped closer.
Close enough that he could see his own reflection in her crimson eyes.
"From this moment onward," she said,
"you are Azriah."
A pause.
"Azriah… Antioch."
The name settled between them.
Heavy.
Final.
"…Azriah," he repeated slowly.
As if tasting it.
"…Yes."
"…And Noah?"
Asta's gaze didn't waver.
"Forget it."
No emotion.
No hesitation.
"…It has no place in your future."
Silence.
Azriah stood there for a moment.
Thinking.
Processing.
Two names.
One felt familiar.
One felt… imposed.
"…Azriah," he said again.
This time—
Without hesitation.
Asta's smile deepened just slightly.
"Good."
She turned.
As if the matter was already settled.
"Come," she said.
"We're leaving."
"…Who are you?" Azriah suddenly asked.
The woman stopped in front of him.
Looked down at him.
Then—
Smiled.
"…Your mother."
Silence.
Behind her—
"…Lady Asta, this is highly irregular—" one of the researchers began.
She didn't even look back.
"I wasn't asking."
The temperature in the room dropped.
"I funded this project," Asta continued calmly.
"Every resource. Every experiment. Every… failure."
A faint pause.
"And He is my son."
"That's not how this works—" another tried.
This time—
She looked at them.
And the room froze.
"If you finish that sentence," she said softly,
"I will kill every single person in this room."
No one spoke.
No one moved.
Because they believed her.
Asta turned back to Azriah.
As if nothing had happened.
"Come," she said simply.
Azriah didn't move immediately.
"…You're my mother," he repeated.
Testing the word.
"…Yes."
A pause.
He stood.
Not because he trusted her.
Not because he understood.
But because—
For the first time since waking—
Something felt…
Directed.
As he walked toward her, the researchers parted without a word.
No one tried to stop them.
No one dared.
As they reached the door—
Azriah glanced back once.
The room.
The people.
The place he had woken up in.
Empty.
Meaningless.
Then he looked at the woman beside him.
White hair.
Crimson eyes.
Unshaken.
"…Mother," he said again.
Asta's lips curved faintly.
"Yes, Azriah."
And just like that—
He left the place where he had been created.
Without realizing—
He had just stepped into the world that would break it.