My family?
Hearing those words, the nurse's expression changed, filled with sympathy. She lowered her gaze slightly, then offered a warm, encouraging smile.
"Don't worry. Even if you've lost your memories and can't remember them, they're still your family."
Lyxander returned a faint smile.
After the nurse left, he whispered softly—half joking, half sarcastic.
"'Still my family, huh… I wonder if they'd still think so if they knew I've possessed and taken over their child's body.'"
A bitter irony stirred in his heart. A sorrowful reflection slowly surfaced, reminding him of his past life—of the family he had left behind on Earth. Longing for his hometown began to haunt him.
Knock. Knock.
His thoughts were cut short by a knock at the door.
"Come in," Lyxander said.
Hesitant footsteps sounded behind the door. Moments later, it opened, revealing four people entering one after another.
Two men and two women.
Their black hair resembled his own.
The two in front appeared to be his parents—a man with an intellectual face and a calm aura, clearly the source of Lyxander's intelligence, and a beautiful woman who remained graceful despite having three children.
Behind them stood a handsome man wearing glasses. At first glance, he looked somewhat nerdy, yet for some reason his friendly smile felt unsettling, as if hiding something profound. Beside him stood a beautiful girl who looked like a younger version of their mother.
"Uh… I…"
Lyxander fell silent, unsure of what to say.
In the end, he forced a smile and spoke the bitter truth.
"I'm sorry… I don't remember any of you."
Instantly, his mother's eyes reddened. Unable to hold back her tears, she rushed forward and hugged Lyxander tightly.
It should have been a touching moment—if Lyxander hadn't still been injured, forcing him to cry out.
"Aa—ghh!!"
•••
After the emotional reunion, Lyxander returned home with his new family.
Perhaps "returning home" felt more like "leaving" to him.
Standing before a massive building with a vast parking area, his steps came to a halt. His eyes widened, his mouth hanging open in shock.
"Mom… are we rich?" he asked instinctively.
His mother laughed softly.
"Your father is a professor at a prestigious university. Your older brother is a military officer, and your younger sister is a medical student. I suppose… we're fairly well-off."
Lyxander fell silent. He had never imagined his new life would hand him such a jackpot.
In his previous life, he grew up in a family trapped in poverty. His parents were driven out of their home for getting pregnant out of wedlock. Even so, his father was intelligent enough to survive—and to support the family.
Though it was highly debatable whether getting someone else's daughter pregnant counted as intelligence.
Despite how cruel his old world had been, his parents and siblings were still the best family he had ever had.
Ding!
The elevator stopped on the fourth floor.
They walked down a wide corridor until they reached apartment number 109. Entry required a passcode—fortunately, that information was stored in one of Lyxander's memories.
The apartment was spacious.
The first floor contained a living room, kitchen, dining room, bathroom, and several other rarely used rooms.
The second floor housed four large bedrooms facing each other along a hallway.
It was a luxury beyond imagination for Lyxander, who was accustomed to poverty.
—
After being introduced to his new home, Lyxander was led to his personal room.
The room could hold three large bookshelves. In another corner, several neatly tied boxes of old books sat—apparently destined for storage. Lyxander's attention was immediately drawn to the computer on the desk.
A god-tier PC.
"Hahaha… just as expected from rich people," he muttered.
In his previous life, he had never owned a computer and could only admire them from afar. Seeing the machine of his dreams right in front of him brought a brief spark of joy—but there was something more important to do.
He turned on the air conditioner, then let himself fall onto the soft, fragrant bed. The sheets were clearly freshly changed.
Rolling onto his back, Lyxander stared at the high ceiling. Without realizing it, a tear slipped from his eye as overwhelming fortune washed over him.
Lyxander was not someone who cried easily.
He didn't cry when he was bullied in elementary school.
Not when he lost for the first time in the octagon.
Not even when an injury forced him to abandon his career and dreams.
Even when he lost all ambition, no tears fell.
He believed crying never solved anything.
But this time…
he cried.
A memory from Lyxander's mind surfaced—a novel titled *Paradise*.
"When Aiden finally reached heaven, he witnessed pleasures never found in the mortal world. Yet the first thing he sought was not bliss, but his family."
"'O God, where are my family and friends?' he asked."
"'Unlike you, they failed to reach heaven due to their own sins. They have now fallen into hell.'"
"'If that is so, then I beg you—cast me into hell as well.'"
"'Hell is a place of suffering, filled with cruelty and regret. Are you sure you wish to go there?'"
"What use is pleasure and happiness if it is only for myself? I would rather suffer alongside my family and friends than be happy alone."
Even the pleasures of heaven could not compare to having a place to return to.
What meaning does happiness hold if one is trapped in eternal loneliness?
And now, Lyxander had lost the place called home.
Everything in this world belonged to the original Lyxander—family, friends—none of it was truly his.
He was lonely, isolated, alienated from this world.
He just wanted to go home.
After his sobbing subsided, he went down to the first floor. The hallway was silent and dark, as though light itself refused to accompany him, swallowed by the shadows. As he descended the stairs, a small glow emerged from the living room.
On the table sat a slice of cake, topped with a single lit candle.
Today—
July 1st, 1740.
Lyxander's nineteenth birthday.
Perhaps he had lost everything, but life never truly ends because of oneself alone.
Even if all is lost, humans can still build something new.
•••
That night, Lyxander escorted his eldest brother, Pigeon Xander, to the station so he could return to his military base.
After returning home, Lyxander slept soundly.
The next morning—
Ding!
The apartment doorbell rang.
Lyxander opened the door.
Before him stood a man in a black military uniform trimmed with red lines. His face was concealed beneath a military cap.
A smile curved his lips.
"Sir Lyxander, by the authority of the Empire, you are under arrest."