Chapter 102: A Strange New Beginning (2)

"I saved you. Zayn didn’t reset you because I thwarted his plans," the snake declared.

"How did you do that? That’s an SSS-Rank Talent."

"And you can have one, too. I’m a Scavenger. A devourer. Tell me, Zaid, just how far do you think our power extends?"

"..." Zaid didn’t answer. It was a good question.

"You don’t need to think about it. You just need to understand where you are and why you’re here.

I saved you by putting you in a time loop. We’re in it right now. However, my power isn’t that great at the moment. To sustain a time loop, I had to steal part of your life. You’ll understand what that means when you level up this talent to Rank B. For now, I want you to understand one thing: This isn’t free.

The loop has saved you... but it’s temporary. I stole from your life to create it, which means you’re slowly dying as long as you’re here.

However, it’s the only way to break free from Zayn’s control. If you break out of the loop, you’ll lose your identity again. Now you’re in control... It’s not much, but you have a level of control that even the gods would envy. Does it come at the cost of your life? It does... but if you rank up to Scavenger, you won’t die."

"A time loop that costs me my life..." Zaid repeated those words. "If I level up to Scavenger, will I be able to do it too?"

Although he still wasn’t convinced, what did it matter? He’d find out sooner or later anyway. He was grateful to be alive... at least he had one more chance.

"If you learn to see Scavenger as a Concept rather than a Talent, I’m sure you’ll be able to do it. However, that’s beside the point. The key is that you need to find a way to break free from Zayn’s hold."

Zaid smiled mockingly. "That’s asking a lot. Is it even possible?"

"You did it once. Why not do it again?" The snake even seemed annoyed by his response.

"I did it once?" Zaid frowned.

"Aren’t you living it? If you hadn’t, right now you’d be waiting to relive your life—or maybe you’d be dead."

"Oh." The gloom in Zaid lifted. He straightened his back. "That’s true..."

He remembered when he’d asked him about his age... He quickly recalled the fight they’d had... It was true.

He didn’t just have a chance—he actually had a good chance of winning.

Zaid began to think about what he should do and processed what the snake had told him.

"Anything else?" he asked immediately. "Can Zayn get close to me? Maybe I should avoid coming into contact with the Zacharys... Was it a bad idea to come to Astraea?"

"Don’t worry. Zayn can’t get close to you."

"No?"

"We’re using his own writing against him for that; he wrote that he wouldn’t come into contact with you until you’ve been reset and that he’d keep watching you through the puppets. He set a trap for himself." The snake laughed slyly and continued speaking.

"There’s still a chance, but it’s so slim it’s almost impossible. However, he knows you’re here. You’ll have to deal with the consequences."

Zaid nodded. "All right... I got it."

"I won’t be available for as long as this takes. So try your best. Learn. Do your research. Level up and win this. I don’t want to die."

Zaid laughed. "Are you afraid of death?"

"More than you are, yes."

"Don’t worry." Zaid stood up from his seat. "You’ll have a lot to say once I finally get us out of this. But since you gave me such a great opportunity, I’ll have to make the most of it."

The snake looked at Zaid’s renewed expression and nodded placidly. Without saying goodbye, he vanished...

When he did... Zaid sat down heavily.

Valia looked at him, in shock. She had already started to get up because she thought they were about to leave.

"What’s wrong with you?" she asked.

Zaid didn’t answer her.

"All of this... is surreal. A few months ago, it was my birthday... A few months ago, I barely woke up and thought it was a stroke of luck... I was just a pawn in someone else’s game." He clenched his fists.

He pulled his knees up to his chest and hugged them.

He dug his fingernails into his palms and clamped his legs against his chest. The pressure, the fear... He felt like his head was going to explode, but he felt no pain.

He just felt an intense pressure that he didn’t know where it was coming from. It was persistent, bothersome, and prevented him from acting...

His gaze remained fixed on a spot among the distant buildings...

When his mind cleared, after an hour of that, he realized he had been looking at the academy the whole time.

’Even going there was manipulated...’

’Alice...’ He frowned. ’Alice might be dead. Martin, Finn, Mr. Khan...’

Gulp! He swallowed hard to hold back the sadness rising in his throat and took a deep breath to hide his feelings.

’No... maybe they’re still alive. Alice was a good mage. She might have escaped, and I just didn’t know about it. Martin... I always feel like he’s hiding things. Finn and Khan... they were strong.’ Zaid quickly realized he was just trying to convince himself of something silly.

Finally, he clenched his knees tighter and closed his eyes.

’...If they’re alive, I’d like to find them again.’ He sighed inwardly. ’If they’re dead, we’ll meet in another life.’

’But... in this one, I’ll avenge them.’ He clenched his fists even tighter and opened his eyes.

He pushed his feelings aside and stood up.

"Let’s go. We have to get moving," he said.

Valia stood up then. "Wait, we’re waiting for someone," she said.

Zaid frowned. "Who?" he asked.

Just as Valia was about to speak, the door to the room creaked.

Chirrr!

Zaid turned to look in that direction, and his body froze for a moment.

"Scarlett..."

"Oh, you’re alive." Scarlett, that crimson-haired, disheveled beauty, smiled. "I thought you were going to die. I used so many potions, and you still wouldn’t wake up..."

Now that Zaid thought about it, he smelled like potions, and his throat tasted sweet from the potions this girl had made.

Zaid smiled. "I’ve been a bother... Thank you."

"You don’t have to thank me. You wouldn’t believe how surprised I was when a cat and a snake came to me to protect a human... I almost had a heart attack! God, I thought: Is this a tribute to a god? But I haven’t reached the rank of God of Alchemy yet, so I quickly realized it wasn’t!"

Zaid couldn’t help but laugh at that bizarre thought.

"Oh, right. Everyone in the guild is talking about you. What happened? I heard that all your companions died on a mission, but word in the guild is that you were the only survivor... Lord Lodrey has been looking for you. The city is in an uproar."

’Lord Lodrey is looking for me? The city’s in chaos...’ Zaid nodded.

"Do you live here? I might need a lot of your help these days," Zaid said.

"Sure! You can come pick me up. My teacher hasn’t shown up in a few months, so I’ve been feeling lonely here lately. Just come by whenever you want."

"Okay, thanks, Scarlett. See you later."

"See you later, Zaid... Or Gio?"

"Whatever you prefer." Zaid smiled at her and put his mask back on.

First, he’d go to the guild.

And before doing so, he checked something important: Were his levels where they should be?