The forest pressed in around us, the weight of its silence as suffocating as the battle we’d just escaped. I stumbled against a tree, my legs weak, my breaths shallow. The cool bark bit into my shoulder, grounding me even as my head swam.

[System Alert: Recovery Mode Engaged. Chronomancy Strain Detected. Stamina and Focus Reduced by 25%.]

The words hovered faintly in the corner of my vision, a quiet reminder of just how much the fight had cost me. I clenched my teeth and pushed the notification aside, refusing to dwell on it. There wasn’t time.

Derrick paced nearby, his heavy boots crunching against the forest floor. He hadn’t even sheathed his sword, the massive weapon resting across his shoulders as he turned sharp, frustrated circles.

“This is why I told you not to keep the damn shard,” he growled, his voice cutting through the stillness. “It’s not worth it, Lena. We’re dragging trouble behind us like a damn banner.”

Lena sat on a flat stone near the edge of the clearing, her back straight despite the exhaustion etched across her face. The shard rested in her hands, its light dim and flickering.

“I didn’t ask for your approval, Derrick,” she said, her tone sharp but tired. “The shard’s ours. And it’s the only thing standing between us and ignorance.”

“Ignorance might’ve been safer,” Derrick snapped, stopping to glare at her. “We’ve got the Hunters on us now. What’s your plan for that, genius? Wait for them to catch up and hope they change their minds?”

Lena didn’t answer immediately. Her gaze was fixed on the shard, the faint light playing across her face.

“What’s your suggestion, then?” she said finally, looking up at him. “Toss the shard into a river and call it a day? Hope it doesn’t end up in the wrong hands?”

“That might be smarter than letting it light us up like a target,” Derrick shot back.

“Enough,” I said, surprising even myself with the firmness in my voice. Both of them turned to look at me, Derrick’s frown deepening, Lena raising an eyebrow.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“We can’t just keep arguing,” I said, forcing myself to straighten up. My legs wobbled slightly, but I managed to stay upright. “The shard isn’t going away. We need to figure out what it’s for—what it’s doing.”

Lena tilted her head, a faint glimmer of approval in her eyes. “I’m glad at least one of us is thinking clearly,” she said, her tone softer now.

Derrick grumbled something under his breath but didn’t argue further.

“There’s a place we can go,” Lena said, holding up the shard. Its light flared faintly, as though reacting to her words. “A ruin. It’s not far from here, maybe a day’s travel. If the shard’s going to reveal anything, it’ll happen there.”

Derrick groaned. “A ruin. Of course. Why not throw a volcano into the mix while we’re at it?”

I ignored his sarcasm, focusing on Lena. “What makes you so sure about this place?”

She hesitated, just for a moment, before answering. “Because I’ve been there before.”

Her words hung in the air, heavy with meaning.

“It was years ago,” Lena continued, her voice quieter now. “Back when I was just another scavenger, picking through ruins for artifacts to sell. I didn’t know about the marked or the system’s anomalies back then. I thought it was just another job.”

She paused, her fingers tightening around the shard. “But the ruin was… different. The system didn’t act the way it was supposed to. There were glitches—anomalies that made no sense. The energy there felt alive, like the system itself was trying to push me out.”

Derrick folded his arms, his scowl deepening. “And let me guess. That brilliant discovery almost got you killed?”

Lena’s lips twitched into a faint smirk. “Of course it did. But it also taught me something. The system isn’t perfect. It has cracks, just like everything else. And those cracks are where we find the truth.”

Her words sent a chill through me. The idea of a flawed system—an entity that controlled this world but wasn’t infallible—was both fascinating and terrifying.

“You really think the shard is connected to this place?” I asked.

“I don’t think,” Lena said firmly. “I know. The shard reacts to system energy, and the ruin is alive with it. If we want answers, that’s where we’ll find them.”

“And if we don’t?” Derrick asked.

Lena shrugged, the flicker of her smirk returning. “Then at least we’ll know we tried. But if you’d rather wait for the Hunters to catch up…”

Derrick sighed heavily, rubbing a hand over his face. “Fine. We’ll go. But if this blows up in our faces, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“It’ll be worth it,” Lena said, her voice quieter but certain.

I glanced at the shard again, its faint pulsing drawing my gaze like a flame. The system’s notifications from earlier flashed through my mind:

[System Alert: Temporal Affinity Detected. Artifact Synchronization: 12% Complete.]

The word “synchronization” sent a shiver down my spine. Whatever this shard was, it wasn’t just a tool. It was tied to me somehow.

As the group settled into uneasy silence, I caught a faint flicker of light in the distance. My breath hitched as I turned toward it, spotting several glowing orbs hovering near the direction of the town gates.

“They’re still following us,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

Derrick turned sharply, his expression darkening. “Hunters?”

“Probably,” Lena said, though her tone lacked its usual confidence.

The light flickered again, growing brighter before disappearing into the shadows.

A system notification appeared, sharp and direct:

[Warning: Faction Pursuit Detected. Proximity Alert: 0.5 Miles. Suggested Action: Evade or Neutralize.]

Derrick let out a long sigh, his hand tightening around his sword hilt. “Great. Looks like we won’t be getting much sleep tonight.”

Lena smirked faintly, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “Good thing I’m used to working under pressure.”