“You mean there was an incident before?” Yvain stood from his chair.

This was his first day at school, and lo and behold, he’d stumbled upon a lead. Investigating the Vision Resonator was turning out to be a more labyrinthine endeavor than he’d ever imagined.

“Yes, there was an incident where a volunteer for a testing event awakened his vision and went on a rampage. Thankfully, it didn’t kill him,” Finn Wilderwood said, a grim chuckle escaping him.

Yvain frowned. “And we still don’t know who invented this contraption?”

Finn shook his head, his expression a mixture of frustration and resignation. “It seems the inventor is protected more fiercely than a royal heir—highly hidden, too. Even the patent documentation is locked tighter than a dragon’s vault. Whoever it was, they had some serious clout.”

“Did the choice to use the academy grounds for this little experiment come from the one behind its creation? I don’t like where this is heading…” Yvain muttered.

“But if the headmaster of the academy, Princess Bianca Lumine, agreed to host this wonder, doesn't that imply…” Finn narrowed his eyes, trailing off as if afraid of the answer.

“For her to agree, safety measures must have been installed,” Yvain sighed. “Which, knowing how this device works, could very well translate to ‘good luck, everyone!’”

The boy cringed at the thought that children like him were in close proximity to that thing. Vulnerable people like Blair Inkor, and maybe even himself, and quite a high risk of falling into a rampage.

Finn contemplated, tapping his fingers lightly on the table. “We should consult His and Her Majesty, after all.”

“No,” Yvain shook his head firmly, “They’re busy right now.”

***

Morgan had begun calculating the day of her imminent ‘death’ based on the amount of soul energy she burned through each loop. This time, the clock wasn’t just ticking—it was practically screaming.

Three day loop, four day maximum. This was the shortest loop they had ever experienced.

“Do you think it’s the outsiders?” Morgan asked Burn, who was busy donning Galahad’s outfit.

Burn shook his head. “Last time, I died too, so we assumed it was something colossal. But just because I won’t die this time doesn’t mean it’ll be a cozy little affair.”

“The fact that we returned to the day right after our last loop ended means I must have concluded we needed more preparation, right?” Morgan asked.

“We are prepared. I’d rather think we came back just to send information to the past,” Burn replied.

Morgan nodded. “So, you’re planning to face them yourself now?” she asked, with a hint of wry curiosity.

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Burn hesitated, weighing the risks. “Your death—you predicted it’ll be either today or tomorrow, right?”

“Yes,” Morgan answered cheerfully, as if she were discussing the weather.

“Should we stick together, then?” Burn ventured, the concern in his voice barely masked by his calm demeanor.

Morgan chuckled, shaking her head. “Are you that worried?”

Now that Burn knew it was Morgan the outsiders were after, he was reluctant to let her face them. The surge of energy that allowed them to locate this hidden world was coming from her soul—what if they had a device to recognize her?

Even with the grim certainty that she would meet her end either today or tomorrow, Burn could feel bitterness settle in like an unwelcome guest.

“Don’t worry about me. Go face the Junior Fleet Admiral. I’ll just take a look through your treasury and see if I can find anything that could’ve killed your father years ago,” Morgan said with a soft smile.

But Burn could hardly feel relieved—it felt more like swallowing a bitter pill. Sure, it was unavoidable, but why did it have to be so soon? It irritated him. At least her searching through the treasury for corrupted items seemed unlikely to kill her. After all, she was the Original Saint.

“See you later,” Morgan said, bestowing a quick peck on the corner of his lips, then turning to find someone to lead her to the treasury.

Burn walked briskly to the door just as she passed. He called out, “Morgan.”

She turned, eyebrows arched, curiosity lighting her face.

“Next loop, teach me how to manifest Vision,” Burn requested.

Morgan’s surprise was palpable. A moment later, her smile broadened like a cat who'd just spotted a particularly enticing mouse. “You want to be a Vision user?”

Burn nodded, feeling slightly ridiculous for how pleased her excitement made him. Of course, he wanted strength—one didn’t need the astuteness of an oracle to deduce that. Yet, to Morgan, his sudden revelation might have appeared rather hasty.

“Tell me, what’s your motivation?” she inquired.

Burn shrugged, feigning nonchalance. “I want to learn the mind spell to read your memory. This way, you can share your perspective with me too. Especially when the loop resets.”

“Hmm,” Morgan hesitated, “I don’t mind, but even Master Vlad needed years to… you know what? You’re a genius. Perhaps you’ll break a record.”

Burn snorted.

“Bye, Bunny,” Morgan said, walking away backward, taking time to see his final smile just a bit longer.

As she disappeared from view, Burn’s expression morphed into something darker.

He thought, wouldn’t it be just perfect if he could bring her memory back to the past? Okay, not just her memory, but ‘her’. Because even if he had her perspective, the past her might have a different idea since she saw it through him, not experiencing it on her own.

Sure, Morgan was still Morgan, even sans memories and feelings. She would likely come to the same conclusion, but returning to the past with a stripped-down version of her was just… different.

No, he wouldn’t love her less. But these different versions of Morgan actually weighed on his mind. Not to mention he could hide his memory from her with his mental fortitude if he was insistent enough. It felt like manipulation—Burn scoffed. So he had come to this. Ahh, the audacity of his own thoughts.

“Fuck.”

Burn rubbed his forehead. The thought of him manipulating his memory to manipulate Morgan crossing his mind at all made him feel sick.

Worse still was the specter of ‘first loop Morgan’.

That version of her somewhat scared him more than anything else. If she truly existed—and of course, she did; she vanished along with the world that perished when the loop reset—just knowing that Morgan, the one who despised him with such fervor, had ever been real gnawed at his insides.

He had arrived at a new low.

Was this the pinnacle of his desperation: a relentless quest to ensure she never loathed him? Whatever happened to his bravado about embracing the world’s disdain as long as he could do as he pleased?

He didn’t want this kind of evil to be him.

He cursed himself in an orchestra of profanities while walking, his expression a delightful canvas painted with anger and self-loathing. Ah yes, the potential he held—a true marvel of self-sabotage.

See you later, she said. Burn felt like punching a wall. He truly didn’t want this later to be two days ago.