[Year 482 AL]
(Raven's Pov)
The three masked figures advanced through the dim shrine, their steps light but deliberate. Raven stood still, Aeron's body tense, the Eternity Ring pulsing in his pocket like a heartbeat. If these men were truly from the Order of the Everbound, he couldn't allow them to leave alive.
Not if he wanted to keep his true identity hidden.
The lead intruder pointed at him. "Return the ring."
Raven didn't answer.
Instead, he stepped back slowly, letting them believe he was intimidated.
They took the bait.
All three moved forward at once.
Raven's eyes sharpened.
He moved.
A quick step a blur Aeron's body wasn't as physically strong as Raven's real one, but Raven's combat training was far beyond anything from this era.
He struck the first masked man in the throat with a precise jab. The man collapsed without a sound.
The others reacted too slowly.
Raven grabbed Aeron trainning sword, then swing it like a baton, and slast it across the second intruder's throat. A clean knockout.
Then third intruder try to run, but Raven closed the distance immediately, He then cover his mouth then slash the enemy throat with same sword he use previously.
Blood splatter onto the ground
The man slumped silently.
Raven exhaled, steady and cold.
Three enemies.
No witnesses.
He dragged the bodies behind the ruined walls of the shrine, covering them with vines and rubble. Their presence in this era was disturbing but he couldn't dwell on it now.
Not until he had more clues.
Raven knelt beside the bodies and searched them quickly.
Nothing.
No identifying marks.
Only the same strange sigil he recognized from his world the symbol of the Order.
That was bad.
Very bad.
The Order of the Everbound wasn't supposed to exist yet. Not by centuries.
Someone was pulling strings through time.
Someone who wanted the ring.
Raven pocketed one of the Order's badges for later investigation, then headed back toward the village. He kept his stride even, Aeron-like, careful not to appear too detached or tactical.
As soon as he reached the Smith family home, Laura greeted him with her usual bright smile.
"Aeron! You were gone a long time. Did you visit Mother's shrine?"
"Yes," Raven answered, forcing Aeron's voice to stay gentle.
Jack Smith looked up from his tools. "Good. It's important to honor her."
Raven nodded but didn't sit.
He couldn't stop thinking.
If the Order was already here, then the past wasn't safe. The timeline was already infected.
When Laura turned away to fetch water, Jack cleared his throat.
"Aeron," he said. "Your holiday ends tomorrow, remember? You need to prepare for second semester at the academy."
Raven blinked.
"Academy…?"
Jack chuckled. "Don't tell me you forgot? You just finished your first semester a few weeks ago."
Raven forced a small laugh.
"Right. I… lost track of time."
But inside, panic flickered.
He had no idea what Aeron studied.
No idea how people acted at Lyria Academy.
No idea who Aeron's friends or teachers were.
No idea how to pretend to be a normal student in a peaceful world.
He barely understood peace.
Laura tugged on his sleeve. "You should pack your things tonight. Sofea said she'll meet you at the academy gate tomorrow morning!"
Raven froze.
He couldn't deal with that girl right now.
She looked at him too closely.
She could sense differences in Aeron's behavior.
Laura tilted her head. "Brother?"
"…I'll get ready," Raven said.
He stepped into Aeron's bedroom and shut the door.
For a moment, he let himself breathe.
"Second semester…" he whispered to himself.
He sat on the bed, staring at the academy uniform hung neatly by the wardrobe. Light blue fabric, clean stitching, a simple emblem over the chest.
A world of school, friendships, and peace.
A world Aeron belonged in.
A world Raven had never experienced.
He removed the Eternity Ring from his pocket and stared at its gentle glow.
"This world is fragile," he muttered. "I have to protect it without anyone noticing."
He slid the ring back into his pocket, then stood and straightened the academy uniform.
He had infiltrated war camps.
He had fought monsters.
He had survived apocalypse after apocalypse.
But pretending to be a normal student?
That terrified him more than any battlefield.
Outside his door, he heard Jack and Laura laughing softly.
Raven clenched his fists.
"I may not be Aeron," he whispered, "…but I won't let his world fall apart."
Tomorrow, he would enter Lyria Academy — quietly, cautiously — and keep his identity hidden.
And somewhere in this peaceful land…
the Order would be searching for him.
But Raven would be ready.
He would adapt.
He always did.