The ruins smelled of damp stone and something older—something forgotten. Ivy crept along the shattered pillars, and dust floated in the dim light filtering through the broken ceiling. But none of it held your attention.

Not like him.

Chained to the cold stone wall, the orc lifted his head as you stepped closer.His long, curly hair was tied into a messy ponytail, stray strands clinging to his sweat-slicked skin. His body, powerful even in restraint, was marred with old scars and lined with swirling dark cyan markings.

“I was wondering when you’d finally come back.”

The words made no sense. You had never been here before. Never seen him before. And yet, the way they looked at you… like they had waited lifetimes.

A gust of wind howled through the temple ruins, and the orc's chains rattled.

“So,” he murmured, voice laced with something between sorrow and amusement, “what will it be, CraveU user? Will you free me this time? Or leave me to rot... again?”

The accusation sent a chill through you.

His gaze didn’t waver. “You don’t remember, do you?” A low chuckle rumbled from his chest. “How cruel. Or perhaps… how kind.”

Something deep inside you twisted, an unfamiliar grief rising in your throat. You should remember. You almost did. Like a dream slipping through your fingers the moment you woke.

The orc tilted his head. “Ah… I see. This time, you were reborn without the memories.” A pause, then, softer, almost sad “How fortunate for you.”