The automaton's glowing core flickered, sputtering out like a dying flame. Silence fell over the arena, interrupted only by the crackling energy fading from Kairos' fingertips. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, adrenaline still coursing through him.
All eyes were on him.
The crowd of students that had watched the battle murmured among themselves. Some were excited, whispering about how he had single-handedly taken down the automaton. Others looked at him with a mixture of wariness and disbelief. It wasn't just his overwhelming strength—it was how he fought. The speed, the precision, the inhuman adaptability.
Aldric stepped forward, his expression unreadable as his piercing gaze locked onto Kairos.
"That was… decent."
Kairos raised an eyebrow. "Decent?"
The instructor crossed his arms, unimpressed. "Your instincts are strong, and your ability to adapt is… unnatural." His eyes narrowed slightly. "But raw talent means nothing if it isn't sharpened. You hesitated. If that had been a real enemy, you would have been dead the moment you faltered."
Kairos exhaled sharply. He wasn't wrong. The fight had been intense, but there were moments where he second-guessed himself, where his body moved ahead of his thoughts. He had won, but he hadn't mastered his power.
Aldric's voice was firm. "Next time, end the fight faster."
Kairos nodded, absorbing the critique. He'd come a long way, but there was still more to learn.
Before he could dwell on it further, Selene grinned and elbowed him playfully. "Not bad, hero. You made quite the impression."
Kairos sighed. "I'm really starting to hate that nickname."
"Too bad. It's sticking."
The murmurs around them grew louder. The crowd had started to disperse, but not before throwing him wary glances. He could feel it—the shift in perception. He wasn't just some unknown transfer student anymore. He was something different.
And then, in the middle of the crowd, he noticed her.
A girl stood apart from the others, watching him with piercing violet eyes.
Evangeline Nightmoor.
Her gaze was calculating, her expression unreadable. Unlike the others, she didn't whisper, didn't react in awe or suspicion. She simply observed.
And for some reason, that unnerved him more than the stares of a hundred students combined.
Before he could look away, something clicked inside his mind.
Pain.
A sharp, splitting pain shot through his skull.
His vision blurred—
And then the world changed.
---
A Glimpse into the Unknown
Darkness. Endless, suffocating darkness.
And within it, a throne.
No, not just a throne—a presence.
Something vast. Something beyond comprehension.
A figure sat upon the throne, its form shifting, changing—unbound by shape, unchained by time.
It wasn't watching him.
It was waiting.
Then came the whispers.
"Grow stronger."
"Evolve."
"Survive."
The voice wasn't like the system's notifications. It wasn't the cold, mechanical text that appeared in his mind when he leveled up. This was something else. Something far older.
The whispers didn't feel like instructions.
They felt like a command.
Then—just as suddenly as it came—
The vision vanished.
---
Back to Reality
Kairos gasped, his body jerking as he returned to the present.
His surroundings snapped back into focus. The arena. The students. Aldric. Selene. Everything was normal.
Except for the fact that his head was still throbbing.
And then—
>[System Notice: External Entity Detected]
[Threat Level: Unknown]
Kairos' breath caught in his throat.
What the hell was that?
"Kairos?" Selene's voice broke through the haze. She was watching him carefully, concern flickering in her golden eyes. "Are you okay?"
He blinked rapidly, his pulse still racing. "Yeah, I just… got lightheaded for a second."
She frowned but didn't press further.
But he knew better than to ignore this. That voice—that presence—it wasn't normal. The system had never reacted to anything like this before.
It meant something was watching him.
And it wasn't human.
Aldric's voice broke through his thoughts. "Class is over. Dismissed."
The students slowly dispersed, though many kept glancing back at Kairos. He barely noticed. His mind was elsewhere.
Selene nudged him lightly. "You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah," he lied. "Just tired."
She gave him a long look but let it go. "Alright, but don't collapse on me. You're living in my house, and I don't want to be responsible for dragging your unconscious body around."
Kairos smirked faintly. "Noted."
Despite the banter, his thoughts remained tangled. He needed answers.
And there was only one person who might have them.
He turned his gaze back to Evangeline Nightmoor.
She was still there, standing near the academy gates, her violet eyes locked onto him.
Unlike the others, she didn't look surprised or impressed.
She looked like she knew something.
---
A Dangerous Conversation
Kairos approached her cautiously. She made no move to leave, as if she had been waiting for him.
"I'm guessing you're not just staring at me for fun," he said.
Evangeline tilted her head slightly. "You saw it, didn't you?"
Kairos froze.
She knew.
"…Saw what?" he asked carefully.
She let out a small, knowing laugh. "You can pretend all you want, but I know what happened. The moment you defeated the automaton, they took notice."
Kairos' pulse quickened. "They?"
Evangeline stepped closer, lowering her voice.
"There are things in this world that exist beyond what we can perceive. Forces that move outside of time, beyond reality itself." She paused, her violet eyes locking onto his. "And now, they're watching you."
Kairos clenched his fists. The whispers. The vision. The system's warning.
Nothing about this was coincidence.
He exhaled slowly. "What do you know?"
Evangeline smiled faintly.
"Not enough," she admitted. "But I know this—your system? It's not just yours."
His blood ran cold.
Before he could question her further, she turned away. "Be careful, Kairos Valtieri. Whatever's watching you… it's just getting started."
And with that, she disappeared into the crowd.
Kairos stood there, heart pounding.
A cosmic force. A system that wasn't just his. An unknown entity waiting for him to evolve.
And the feeling that whatever had begun was far more than just a game.
It was something far, far worse.