The Brevis family held their breath while hiding behind a stall—every noise outside sounded like a scream.
No sound.
No movement.
Only panic, written all over their faces for the entirety of fifteen-minutes they were hiding.
Gavric gripped Lira's hand tightly.
Ashen had his face buried in his father's chest, eyes clenched shut.
But his ears stayed open—listening to the chaos outside.
Boots. Screams.
Shouts in a language he didn't even fully understand yet.
> "They're not here to kill," one voice muttered.
"They're here for the crystals."
Crystals?
Ashen's brows twitched.
What crystals? Why take hostages… for some damn rocks?
But before he could ask—
The noise changed.
No longer screams…
But resistance.
A voice boomed through the building, twice, louder each time:
> "The Guild is here!"
"The Guild is here!"
Gavric let out a breath.
"They're here. We're safe now."
Ashen looked up, eyes wide.
> "Papa… Mama… we'll be okay?"
Gavric forced a smile.
"Yes, son. They've come for us."
Ashen crawled to a crack in the wood, peeking through.
A lone Guild warrior stood surrounded—seven attackers at once.
Their arms sparkled with magical conduits, glowing in a rainbow of runes.
Ashen had never seen a real magic item in action.
They taught about them in school…
But to see one up close?
He couldn't look away.
The Guild warrior raised his arm—
A shield, carved with ancient symbols.
Flashes of light slammed into it.
Magic clashed like thunder.
The shield held.
Until—
One spell broke through.
The warrior's mask shattered.
Ashen's breath caught.
The face behind the mask was older… scarred… but unmistakable.
> "M–Master Madhav…?" he whispered.
Gavric turned. "What did you say?"
But Ashen didn't hear.
He was frozen.
A strange warmth filled his mind.
Memories.
Memories that did not belong to this world.
> Sword lessons under candlelight.
Deadlines. Drawing. Rejections.
The night he let go… of everything.
His knees gave out.
> "I'm reincarnated… into my own manga?"
The world spun.
Ashen grabbed his father's arm in terror—
Not from the present, but from the future he suddenly remembered.
> "Dad—what year is this? In the ancient calendar?"
Gavric blinked. "2147."
Ashen's hands trembled.
Sweat soaked his collar.
He whispered, horror setting in:
> "Twenty-five years to go…"
His parents stared at him, confused.
The danger had passed.
The Guild was here.
The terrorists were being dragged out one by one.
Why was their son panicking now?
They didn't ask. Not yet.
Master Madhav stared down at the last of the attackers.
He muttered, half to himself:
> "Crystals in the West Sea Isles, huh… Rookies playing scavenger with the devil's dice."
He walked away without looking back.
But Ashen knew—
This world was on a timer.
And he was the only one who knew the final chapter.
---
Scene: One Week Later
Morning.
The skies over Brevia have begun to clear.
The scent of ash has faded, replaced with flowers in bloom…
And children's laughter from nearby yards.
Inside the home, Lira stirs a pot—quietly.
But her brows are furrowed.
> "He's talking less," she finally says.
Gavric looks up from polishing his old sword.
"Ashen?"
She nods.
"He used to talk about apples, swords… even ghosts.
Now… nothing. He just stares outside like he's waiting for something to come back."
Gavric's hand stills.
"He saw too much."
"But he's only three. He shouldn't carry that kind of silence."
Lira walks over, voice lowering—almost afraid.
"What if it's not just fear?
What if it… changed him?"
Gavric sighs, leaning back.
"Then we change it back.
Maybe get him out of the house more.
Let him climb trees, fall on his butt—
Forget about that day."
She smiles faintly.
"So he breaks a leg instead of his spirit?"
Gavric chuckles.
"Better a bruise than a scar on the soul."
Just then, a small voice from the hall cuts in.
> "I want to learn martial arts."
They turn.
Ashen stands there barefoot.
Crimson hair tousled from sleep—
But his eyes…
His eyes are unnervingly calm.
Steady.
Mature beyond their years.
> "I want to get stronger.
For something… that'll happen.
A long time from now."
Gavric stares.
Lira steps closer, kneels to his level.
> "Why, sweetie?"
Ashen hesitates.
He wants to say it.
That he's been reincarnated.
That this world, these streets, these faces—
He's seen them before.
That a storm is coming in twenty-five years.
And if they're not strong enough…
He'll lose them.
Again.
But he doesn't say that.
Instead, he just murmurs:
> "Because I don't want to lose you."
Lira pulls him close.
Her arms wrap around his tiny body.
Her heartbeat calms him.
Gavric places a firm hand on Ashen's shoulder.
> "Then we'll get stronger together."
Ashen closes his eyes.
In his past life…
No one ever held him like this.
No one promised to walk with him through the dark.
But this time…
He'll fight fate itself.