Wren slowly flickers his eyelids open.
?Aah...
?A sharp, throbbing pain tears straight through his skull. He winces, pressing a hand to his temples.
?Where am I...? Is this the afterlife?
?He blinks against the brightness, staring into a strange, endless white void stretching out in every direction. He has no idea where he is or how he got here.
?Frowning, he tries to retrace his final moments. He remembers the goblins closing in, the crude stone dagger ready to slice through his flesh, and the absolute certainty that his death had finally arrived. But right before the end, he had heard that bizarre, echoing voice... and then everything went black.
?Suddenly, a strange realization hits him.
?He moves his fingers, flexing his hands. He wiggles his toes, shifting his limbs.
?His entire body feels... completely fine. The heavy, agonizing weight of his injuries is entirely gone.
?Looking down, he notices he is wearing a simple, rough garment—it isn’t much, but it covers him, keeping him decent.
?I can’t believe it... What does all of this even mean?
?Right as that thought crosses his mind, a vivid memory flashes back: the strange, glowing owl barreling straight toward him before crashing directly into his stomach and vanishing inside his body.
?Panic flaring, Wren quickly pulls up the hem of his garment and presses his hands flat against his stomach. He pats down his skin frantically, searching for any sign of a wound, a scar, or a foreign object, but he doesn’t find anything unusual at all.
?Just as he stands there completely baffled, a familiar, mocking voice echoes directly inside his head:
?"Oh, finally awake, are you? Do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting here?"
?Wren freezes, the strange voice ringing clearly in his mind once again.
?Slowly, he lifts his head, his golden eyes scanning the vast, endless white space stretching out around him.
?"Who’s there...?"
?"Who’s there? Seriously?" a sarcastic voice snaps back. "You can’t even recognize the great being who just saved your pathetic life?"
?Right out of thin air, a familiar brown-and-grey owl flickers into view, floating lazily in the empty space right in front of his face.
?Wren stares at it in blank disbelief. The owl stares right back, blinking lazily.
?For a few long seconds, neither of them says a word. Then, the shock on Wren’s face melts away, replaced instantly by a surge of pure rage.
?"YOU!"
?Wren lunges forward, pointing an accusing finger straight at the bird, his golden eyes widening in fury.
?"You’re that damn owl! The one that flew straight into my stomach!"
?"Watch your mouth, human!" the owl snaps right back, puffing out its feathered chest in indignation. "Show some respect to your savior!"
?"My savior?" Wren echoes, his voice pitching up in disbelief as he stares at the arrogant bird floating before him.
?Wren looked around the white void before turning back to the owl.
?"Then what the hell is this place? And why am I wearing these ugly clothes? Where are my injuries? What did you do to me?!"
?"One question at a time!"
?The owl flapped its wings impatiently, ruffling its brown-and-grey feathers.
?"Honestly, humans are so troublesome. You should be grateful you’re still alive instead of bombarding me with questions!"
?"Grateful?"
?Wren’s expression darkened, his teeth gritting together.
?"I was about to be killed by a bunch of goblins, and then some crazy bird crashed into my chest! I woke up in a place that looks like heaven, and you’re telling me to be grateful?"
?He took a deep, shaky breath, trying to steady his pounding heart.
?"Actually, forget that. Am I dead or not?"
?The owl tilted its head, a smug little expression crossing its beak.
?"Nope."
?"...What?"
?"You’re not dead. Congratulations!"
?Wren stared at it in total disbelief, his mind struggling to process how a creature this annoying could possibly exist.
?The owl nodded proudly, as though it had just explained the most obvious thing in the world.
?"This is your inner world. A place where your mind and soul meet. Pretty impressive, isn’t it?"
?Wren slowly looked around.
?Endless white stretched in every direction. There were no walls, no floor that he could properly identify, and no visible source of light.
?"Impressive?" he muttered, raising an eyebrow. "It looks like someone forgot to finish creating the world."
?The owl’s smug smile instantly vanished, its feathers puffing up in offense.
?"Excuse me?"
?"Nothing," Wren quickly replied, clearing his throat and crossing his arms.
Wren rubbed his temples, a heavy headache starting to form.
?An inner world? A talking owl? What kind of crazy situation has my life turned into?
?Then he remembered the dark cave, the monsters, and everything that had just happened.
?The stone dagger.
The pain.
The moment he thought he was going to die.
?His expression turned serious, and he looked right at the bird.
?"Wait. What happened to the goblins?"
?The owl gave him a proud, smug look.
?"Still frozen, most likely."
?"Frozen?"
?"Time-freeze," the owl said casually. "It is one of my special powers. I temporarily stopped those ugly little creatures from turning you into their dinner."
?Wren’s eyes widened in shock.
?"You can stop time?"
?"Don’t get too excited. It is not as powerful as it sounds."
?The owl waved a wing dismissively.
?"Besides, you were so close to dying that I had to rush in before you became a corpse. Honestly, finding a partner shouldn’t be this exhausting."
?Wren caught the last word.
?"Partner?"
?The owl suddenly went quiet.
?For the first time since they started talking, its expression turned serious.
?"Ah. Right. I suppose we need to talk about that."
?It cleared its throat and straightened its feathers.
?"Human, listen closely. Your life is about to change forever."
?Wren narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms.
?"You are going to explain everything, aren’t you?"
?"Of course!"
?The owl spread its wings dramatically.
?"I am Envy, one of the Primordial Sins! And from this moment on, you are my contractor!"
?Silence filled the white space.
?Wren blinked once.
?Then he blinked again.
?"...What?"
?"You heard me."
?"Primordial... what?"
?"The Primordial Sins!" Envy repeated, looking deeply offended. "Have you never heard of them?"
?"No."
?"How ignorant."
?"I am sorry I didn’t spend my childhood studying talking birds!"
?"OWL!"
?Envy screeched so loudly that Wren instinctively covered his ears.
?"I am an owl, not some normal bird! Learn the difference!"
?Wren stared at the loud creature, feeling a massive headache coming on.
?I am going to lose my mind.
?He took a slow, deep breath to calm himself down.
?"Fine. Whatever you are, answer me one question."
?Envy folded its wings neatly.
?"Go ahead."
?"Why me?"
?For once, Wren’s voice had no arrogance or sarcasm in it. He looked down at his own hands, his voice dropping low.
?"I couldn’t awaken even the weakest ability. My own family threw me away like trash, and I almost died to a few basic goblins. So why would something like you choose a loser like me as your partner?"
?Envy watched him quietly for a moment.
?Then, the owl’s beak curled into a strange, confident smile.
?"Because you are perfect."
?Wren frowned, completely confused.
?"Perfect?"
?"That is right."
?Envy fluttered closer, its glowing eyes locking directly onto Wren’s golden ones.