The knock on the door broke Eden's focus. He had been sketching out a strategy for Aurelia case, but it was going nowhere. The timid ghost had left—where to, Eden didn't ask. His thoughts were already tangled around finding a lead.
And by "lead", there wasn't much to go on.
Even the internet offered little. Searching for Aurelia's case was like hunting for a needle in a haystack. All he knew was that she was a fashion student in her twenties, found dead in the class room of Cameron University.
Maybe the university wanted to preserve its reputation; the incident had barely made the news. No family came forward either—Aurelia had been orphaned, with no close relatives.
Right... I should start by asking about her friends. Eden muttered, fingers tapping rhythmically on the table—a habit he had whenever deep in thought.
Tock… tock…
The knock came again.
"Ah… wait a moment." He rose and opened the door. A boy around his age stood outside—taller, broader, with a scar along his jaw and an intense gaze. Muscular too. Eden's first thought was instinctive,
"A thug?" he blurted.
The stranger laughed heartily and threw an arm around Eden's shoulders, causing him to stumble forward.
"Adan! You've been naughty, huh?"What happened to my academic rival's passionnn~?"Mika said, pouting dramatically.
Mika Henderson. Second-smartest after Adan in Cameron Prestige High. At first glance, people assumed he was a bully. But no—Mika was living proof that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
Cheerful. Giddy. Bubbly.
Eden's exact opposite. The type of person who drained his energy just by existing in the same space. For Eden, the male is annoying. Who wouldn't be, with someone yapping nonstop about rivalry.
God… does he have to deal with this constant annoyance again?
Despite the muscles and height, Mika was hopeless at sports. He talked more than he moved. Even Eden was better than him.
"Hey… Mika." Eden forced a calm smile.
"Heard about your twin. Sorry, pal. You holdin' up okay?" Mika asked, his thick country accent ever present, arm still slung around Eden.
"Getting better. Only prayers can help my twin now," Eden replied smoothly. "So… what are you doing here?" Eden raised an eyebrow. Adan hadn't been close to many people. That included Mika.
"Ahaha, the teacher sent me to get you. Everyone else in class has already been questioned—leaving you as the last wise man," Mika said, patting Eden's shoulder before his grin fading. He leaned in, his voice dropping an octave. "The detective's back… asking about Hazim again."
He paused, glancing over his shoulder. "It's real quiet this time. Like they're trying not to leave a trace.
"Hazim…?" Eden paused.
Oh, right. The boy who went missing a few weeks before Adan went into a coma. It had been a big deal. The school tried hard to cover it up back in the first timeline. "I see. So the detective wants to question me? Where?"
"The lounge room." Mika whispered, as if it was a secret.
—
Eden stood still outside the door, hand raised to knock. The detective was already inside, waiting for him. Truth was—he didn't even remember Hazim. Not until Mika brought it up.
In the timeline before, Hazim's body had been found in an old school building, shortly after the Nation Certificate Exam results were released.
They said it was suicide.
But Eden never really looked into it. Back then, it didn't matter. He'd had his own troubles to deal with. The door opened, and Eden came face-to-face with a detective—someone who looked oddly familiar.
Wait… wait… wait.
Detective Hariz? The younger version of that grouchy old man? Ugh...
That couldn't be right. Eden didn't remember him being in charge of the case. It used to be an older detective. Someone else entirely.
Does his return mean the timeline is shifting, too?
The thought hit him hard. It was true—he hadn't followed the same path as before. He was already forgetting how he or Adan used to act during high school… because this time, he was just being himself.
Eden forced a smile. He might as well make use of this — Hariz could be the closest lead he had in the Aurelia case. After all, he was a detective. Staying on his good side wouldn't cost Eden anything. And it might just pay off.
[System initializing…
Subtask unlocked:
Increase your relationship with Detective Hariz
0/100 ]
The panel hovered just behind the detective as Eden read it in silence.
Great...