Chapter 34: The Second Reason

Silence, for one brief moment, the entire world seemed to forget how to move.

Then—

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

Aetheris Academy shook.

Not like an earthquake.

Not like an explosion.

It was as though something beneath the academy had simply turned over in its sleep.

The white towers groaned.

The floating platforms surrounding the academy tilted violently.

Cracks spread across the marble floors, crawling through the halls like black veins.

Students screamed.

Professors shouted orders.

Magical barriers flickered into existence before collapsing seconds later.

And above them—

The sky had become completely black.

There were no stars.

No moon.

No clouds.

Nothing.

Only darkness.

Kael stood frozen in the center of the ruined courtyard.

His eyes remained fixed upward.

The enormous entity known as Fourth was still there.

But something had changed.

The ancient being wasn’t looking at Kael anymore.

For the first time since its arrival—

Fourth looked afraid.

Kael slowly narrowed his eyes.

"...You’re afraid."

Fourth’s enormous head turned.

The countless layers of its voice trembled through the air.

"NO."

Kael raised an eyebrow.

"That sounded extremely convincing."

Leon glanced at him.

"Now probably isn’t the time."

"It’s always the time."

Mira stared at the enormous entity.

"No."

Her voice was quieter.

Kael looked toward her.

Mira’s expression had lost its usual analytical calm.

She was staring at the ground.

"It’s not Fourth."

The cracks beneath their feet suddenly widened.

A violent pulse erupted from below.

BOOM!

Everyone was thrown backward.

Kael hit the ground and rolled several meters before catching himself.

Leon slammed into a broken stone pillar.

Elena barely managed to remain standing by creating a barrier beneath her feet.

Lucien grabbed Mira before she could fall into a widening crack.

Second vanished into the shadows.

Third simply stood there.

Watching.

Pi, however—

"Pi!"

The little creature shot into Kael’s arms.

Kael caught it instinctively.

"Okay. You’re allowed to panic."

"Pi!"

"Yes, I know."

The ground shook again.

This time—

Something spoke.

Not through sound.

Through existence.

WAKE.

Kael’s pupils contracted.

A strange sensation crawled through his body.

He knew that voice.

No.

That wasn’t right.

He didn’t know the voice.

He knew the feeling.

Recognition without memory.

Like remembering a dream that had never happened.

His heart began beating faster.

THUMP.

THUMP.

THUMP.

Then the System appeared.

---

[WARNING.]

[A previously undetected authority has awakened.]

[Classification: ERROR.]

[Origin: Below Aetheris Academy.]

[Identity: UNKNOWN.]

[Threat Level: UNABLE TO CALCULATE.]

[Host’s Return Authority is responding.]

---

Kael stared at the notification.

"Responding?"

Another window appeared.

---

[Return Authority: 13% → 17%]

[Reason: Unknown.]

[Memory Recovery: 63%]

[Warning.]

[The Host is approaching a sealed memory.]

---

Kael’s expression hardened.

A sealed memory.

Again.

Of course.

Because apparently remembering his own life was now a full-time occupation.

He looked toward Lucien.

"Professor."

Lucien was already staring at the System window only Kael could see.

"You saw something."

Kael blinked.

"You can see it?"

Lucien shook his head.

"No."

He pointed toward the floor.

"I can feel it."

The professor’s eyes widened.

"The Primordial Laws beneath this academy are moving."

Mira’s face paled.

"Primordial Laws?"

Lucien nodded.

"Something has awakened beneath the foundation."

Third finally spoke.

"Not something."

Everyone looked at him.

Third’s gray eyes remained fixed on the ground.

"Someone."

A deep sound rolled through the academy.

Not a roar.

Not a voice.

A heartbeat.

THOOM.

The entire academy pulsed.

Every magical circle embedded into the walls activated simultaneously.

Runes that had remained dormant for centuries illuminated the academy.

Kael looked around.

There were thousands of them.

No—

Millions.

The entire structure of Aetheris was covered in ancient symbols.

Mira whispered.

"Those weren’t there before."

Lucien’s expression became grim.

"They were."

He slowly removed his glasses.

"We simply couldn’t see them."

Another pulse.

THOOM.

The black sky above them rippled.

Fourth finally spoke.

"THE SECOND REASON."

Kael looked at it.

"What is it?"

Fourth didn’t answer.

Kael’s irritation grew.

"You’re the one who told me to remember it."

Silence.

"Then tell me what it is."

Fourth’s enormous eyes turned toward him.

"You."

Kael frowned.

"...Me?"

"THE SECOND REASON WAS NEVER A MEMORY."

The world seemed to become colder.

Fourth continued.

"IT WAS A PROMISE."

Kael’s expression changed.

A flash appeared in his mind.

A white room.

A black door.

A younger version of himself.

Someone standing beside him.

A hand resting on his shoulder.

A voice—

If you come back...

The memory shattered.

Kael grabbed his head.

"Ah—!"

Pi immediately climbed onto his shoulder.

"Pi!"

"I’m fine."

He wasn’t.

The world blurred.

For half a second, the ruined academy disappeared.

He was somewhere else.

A white room.

No walls.

No floor.

No ceiling.

Only endless whiteness.

A younger Kael stood before him.

Not Kael Veyron.

Not the person he had been since awakening in this world.

Someone else.

Someone who looked painfully familiar.

The younger Kael was staring at a black door.

Beside him stood the Selector.

But neither of them was speaking

The younger Kael held something in his hand.

A small object.

A silver key.

Kael stared.

"What’s that?"

The younger version of himself turned.

He smiled.

"You don’t remember."

Kael stepped closer.

"Remember what?"

The younger Kael raised the key.

"We made a promise."

The vision cracked.

Kael returned to reality.

He gasped.

Elena immediately grabbed his shoulder.

"Kael!"

"I’m fine."

"You clearly aren’t."

"I’ve been worse."

"That doesn’t make it better.

Leon stepped closer.

"What did you see?"

Kael looked at him.

"I don’t know."

Then—

CRACK!

The courtyard split open.

A massive column of darkness erupted from beneath Aetheris.

Everyone was forced backward.

Fourth raised one enormous arm.

For the first time, the ancient entity moved defensively.

A barrier formed around it.

The darkness struck.

BOOOOOOM!

Fourth was pushed several hundred meters through the air.

The entity crashed into one of the academy’s outer towers.

The tower collapsed.

Everyone stared.

Leon swallowed.

"It just..."

Mira finished the sentence.

"It just pushed Fourth away."

Kael stared at the enormous cloud of dust.

Then he looked down

Something was rising.

A staircase.

No.

A structure.

Ancient stone emerged from beneath the academy.

Piece by piece.

Walls.

Pillars.

A massive circular platform.

And at its center—

A door.

Black.

Identical to the one Kael had seen in the white room.

His blood ran cold.

Pi stopped moving.

Its golden eye widened.

"Home."

Kael stared at it.

"What?"

Pi pointed toward the door.

"Home."

Second suddenly appeared beside them.

His expression was grim.

"I’ve seen that door."

Kael turned toward him.

"When?"

"Before."

"That’s not an answer."

"It is the only one I have."

Third approached.

He stared at the door.

For once, the strange boy looked genuinely unsettled.

"That door wasn’t supposed to be here."

Lucien stepped closer.

"Why?"

Third didn’t answer.

Instead—

The door opened.

Slowly.

No creaking.

No magical energy.

It simply opened.

And behind it—

Was darkness.

Not ordinay darkness.

The kind that seemed to consume the concept of distance.

Kael felt his Karma threads pull toward it.

His entire body stiffened.

The System reacted immediately.

---

[WARNING.]

[Foreign authority detected.]

[Karma connection established.]

[Attempting identification...]

[Failure.]

[Attempting secondary identification...]

[Failure.]

[The System refuses to name what lies beyond the door.]

---

Kael stared.

"The System refuses?"

That was new.

Very new.

The System had called gods, narrative structures, irregularities, authorities, errors, and impossible entities.

But this?

Nothing.

Mira noticed his expression.

"What?"

Kael slowly shook his head.

"Nothing good."

A sound came from inside the doorway.

Footsteps.

One.

Two.

Three.

Slow.

Measured.

Approaching.

Everyone prepared themselves.

Leon summoned his sword.

Elena’s mana surged.

Mira formed a spatial circle.

Lucien raised one hand.

Second disappeared into the shadows.

Third remained completely still.

Pi crawled beneath Kael’s coat.

"Pi."

"Yeah."

Kael’s hand tightened.

"I’d hide too."

Another step.

Then—

A figure emerged.

Kael’s breath caught.

It was a boy.

He looked about seventeen.

Black hair.

Pale skin.

Simple black clothing.

His face was ordinary.

Too ordinary.

Kael couldn’t remember seeing him before.

Yet the moment Kael looked into his eyes—

He knew him.

Not personally.

Something deeper.

The boy stopped.

He looked directly at Kael.

And smiled.

"You remembered the first reason."

Kael’s eyes narrowed.

"Who are you?"

The boy tilted his head.

"You don’t remember me?"

"No."

"Good."

Kael blinked.

"...Good?"

The boy’s smile widened.

"If you remembered me already, we would have a problem."

Second stepped forward.

His expression became horrified.

"No."

The boy looked toward him.

"Hello, Second."

Second’s fists clenched.

"You shouldn’t exist."

"Neither should you."

Third suddenly moved.

He stepped between Kael and the boy.

The boy looked at him.

"Hello, Third."

Third’s eyes narrowed.

"You’re not one of us."

"No."

"Then what are you?"

The boy’s smile disappeared.

"I am what happened after you failed."

Silence.

Kael felt something cold settle in his stomach.

"What does that mean?"

The boy looked at him.

"You three were the beginning."

He pointed at Second.

"Second was created from the memory that refused to disappear."

Then Third.

"Third was born from what was never written."

Finally—

He pointed at Kael.

"And First..."

The boy paused.

"You were the one who returned."

Kael’s expression hardened.

"And you?"

The boy looked down at his own hands.

"I was what remained."

Kael stared.

"That’s not an answer."

"It is."

"No, it’s annoyingly vague."

The boy chuckled.

"You’re still like that."

Kael froze.

Still.

Like that.

The phrase echoed inside his head.

Another memory surfaced.

A white room.

Young Kael laughing.

The same boy standing across from him.

A table between them.

Several objects scattered across its surface.

A silver key.

A black feather.

A cracked mask.

A small golden bell.

And a book.

Kael remembered himself pointing at the boy.

"What are you?"

The boy had smiled.

"The thing you asked to leave behind."

The memory disappeared.

Kael’s eyes widened.

"You..."

The boy smiled.

"Yes."

Kael took a step forward.

"You’re from before."

"Yes."

"Before the story?"

"Yes."

"Before I became Kael Veyron?"

"Yes."

Kael’s voice lowered.

"Then why don’t I remember you?"

The boy’s smile vanished.

"Because you asked me to make sure you wouldn’t."

Silence.

Kael stared.

"What?"

The boy looked toward the black door.

"You wanted to forget."

Kael’s heartbeat accelerated.

"You were afraid that if you remembered everything..."

The boy turned back toward him.

"...you wouldn’t come back."

Kael couldn’t speak.

The System suddenly appeared.

---

[Memory Recovery has exceeded a hidden threshold.]

[63% → 71%]

[Return Authority: 17% → 21%]

[Hidden Memory Fragment recovered.]

[WARNING.]

[The Host’s previous decision is attempting to overwrite the current identity.]

[Identity Refusal has activated automatically.]

---

Kael staggered.

A flood of memories slammed into his mind.

People.

Faces.

A burning city.

Aetheris.

A world collapsing.

Leon lying motionless.

Elena screaming.

Mira crying.

Lucien standing before an impossible door.

Pi—

Pi was gone.

Kael’s chest tightened.

"No."

He saw another image.

The sky splitting.

Thousands of people disappearing.

A black-haired figure standing beside him.

The Selector.

The other Kael.

The First Story.

Everything was collapsing.

And Kael—

was standing at the center.

His hands were covered in blood.

His expression was empty.

Someone was screaming his name.

Not Kael.

Something else.

A name.

A name that the System still refused to display.

Then—

A voice.

His own voice.

"If I return..."

The memory distorted.

"I won’t let it happen again."

Another voice answered.

"And if you forget?"

His younger self smiled.

"Then I’ll find myself."

The vision shattered.

Kael dropped to one knee.

Elena caught him before he hit the ground.

"Kael!"

He breathed heavily.

His mind was spinning.

The boy watched silently.

Leon looked between them.

"What did he see?"

Kael slowly lifted his head.

"I..."

He stopped.

Something was wrong.

He remembered the promise.

He remembered returning.

He remembered losing everyone.

But one thing remained hidden.

The reason.

The real reason.

Why had he returned?

The first reason had been survival.

The voice had claimed he returned because everyone died.

But Fourth had said—

Remember the second.

Kael looked at the boy.

"You know."

The boy nodded.

"You know why I really came back."

"Yes."

"Then tell me."

The boy shook his head.

"I can’t."

Kael’s eyes sharpened.

"Can’t?"

"You made another rule."

Kael froze.

"What rule?"

The boy looked at him with something that almost resembled pity.

"You told me..."

He stepped closer.

"...that if you ever remembered the second reason before you were ready, I was supposed to stop you."

Kael’s blood ran cold.

"And are you?"

The boy smiled.

"No."

A pause.

"I’m supposed to ask you one question."

"What question?"

The boy’s eyes became completely black.

"Who did you promise to save?"

The world stopped.

Kael’s breath caught.

Aetheris disappeared.

The academy vanished.

Even Leon, Elena, Mira, Lucien, Second, Third, and Pi seemed to fade away.

Only that question remained.

Who did you promise to save?

Kael searched his memories.

Nothing.

Then—

Pi whimpered.

"Kael..."

Kael turned.

The little creature was staring at him.

Its two mismatched eyes began changing.

Golden.

Black.

Golden.

Black.

Then both eyes became—

white.

Pi whispered a word.

Not "Kael."

Not "Home."

Not "Before."

A word Kael had never heard Pi say.

"Everyone."

Kael’s pupils contracted.

The boy smiled.

"Now you remember."

A tremendous roar erupted from beneath Aetheris.

The academy’s foundations exploded upward.

Fourth rose from the ruins, no longer looking afraid.

It looked furious.

Its enormous eyes locked onto the black-haired boy.

"YOU."

The boy turned.

"Fourth."

Fourth’s voice shook the world.

"YOU WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO WAKE."

The boy smiled.

"I didn’t."

He looked toward Kael.

"He did."

Kael’s stomach dropped.

Fourth turned toward him.

And for the first time—

Kael realized the ancient entity wasn’t looking at him as a prisoner.

Or a key.

Or even the Returned.

It was looking at him like a warning.

"KAEL VEYRON."

Kael’s eyes widened.

Fourth had never called him that before.

"THE SECOND REASON IS NOT WHY YOU RETURNED."

Kael stared.

Fourth continued.

"IT IS WHY YOU WERE ALLOWED TO."

The black-haired boy laughed softly.

And beneath Aetheris—

something enormous opened its eyes.

The System appeared one final time.

---

[MAJOR EVENT DETECTED.]

[The Second Reason has been partially identified.]

[Return Authority: 21%]

[Memory Recovery: 71%]

[New Hidden Attribute unlocked.]

[—RETURN CLAUSE—

Effect: Unknown

Condition: One promise remains unfulfilled.

Warning: The Host does not yet remember who the promise was made to.]

---

Kael stared at the final line.

One promise.

One person.

One forgotten reason.

And beneath Aetheris—

something was waking that even Fourth feared.

The black-haired boy looked at Kael one final time.

"Welcome back, First."

Then the ground beneath them split open.

And something below the academy—

looked up.