"So, don't you think it's time to tell me why?"
The restaurant was lively, filled with the warm scent of sizzling meat and fragrant spices. The clinking of utensils against plates and the low hum of conversations created a comforting background noise.
Ryn's voice cut through the gentle hum of the restaurant, the clatter of utensils and low chatter of diners fading into the background as he fixed his gaze on the man sitting across from him.
Elias didn't respond immediately. He continued slicing through a tender piece of roasted meat, dipping it in a rich sauce before popping it into his mouth. He chewed slowly, savoring the flavors, completely unbothered by Ryn's piercing stare.
Only after taking a leisurely sip from his drink did he finally look up.
"What do you mean?"
Ryn's fingers curled slightly against the table. His voice was firm. "Isn't it time for you to tell me why you spared my life that day?"
Elias let out a quiet chuckle, shaking his head in amusement.
He clicked his tongue. "Are you still thinking about that?"
Leaning back, he waved a hand dismissively.
"Tsk, tsk… just forget it and live your life."
Ryn's chest tightened with frustration. He had spent too many nights wondering about this, too much time replaying that moment in his head.
And now, Elias was telling him to forget it?
"Forget it?" he repeated, his voice sharpening.
His gaze locked onto Elias. "You're telling me to just forget it after everything I've been through?"
Elias sighed through his nose as if Ryn's insistence was nothing but a minor inconvenience. He set his fork down, intertwined his fingers, and rested his elbows on the table.
Then, he smirked. "Hmm… well, I suppose it'd be more fun if you knew at least a little."
His golden eyes gleamed, their depths filled with something unreadable.
Then, he asked a question that made Ryn's breath hitch.
"Ryn, do you think our meeting was a coincidence?"
Ryn frowned. "What do you mean?"
Elias tilted his head slightly, as if observing something amusing.
"I mean, our first meeting—was it really just chance?"
His voice was calm, almost playful, but there was something unsettling beneath the surface.
He continued. "Meeting that person who called himself an observer… was that a coincidence?"
Ryn stiffened.
He hadn't thought about that in a long time. The observer. That strange figure who had appeared as if he knew everything before vanishing like a phantom.
But Elias wasn't done. "The old well in that abandoned place, sitting right where we met—another coincidence?"
Ryn's breathing slowed.
The well. That ancient, forgotten structure that had felt… wrong. As if it was never supposed to be uncovered.
"And that abyss, sealed deep beneath it…" Elias leaned forward slightly, his voice softer but carrying an undeniable weight.
"Do you think it was just luck that you were able to contain it inside your body?"
Ryn's mind reeled.
It had to be luck. Right?
He had fallen. He had nearly died. But by some miracle, he had survived.
That's what he had told himself all this time.
But now, as Elias laid it out so plainly… it sounded absurd.
The pieces didn't fit.
The coincidences piled up too perfectly.
His fists clenched.
He forced himself to ask, "Wouldn't you have been able to do the same?"
Elias let out a short laugh. "Your thinking is too naive, Ryn."
He picked up a small piece of bread, dipped it into sauce, and took a slow bite before speaking again.
"Humans and other races have tried since ancient times to contain and control the abyss."
He chewed thoughtfully, his expression unreadable.
Then, he continued. "After hundreds—no, thousands—of sacrifices, they all reached the same conclusion."
He set his cup down, his fingers lightly tapping against the table's polished surface.
Then, in a voice quieter, yet far more chilling, he said—
"Uncontainable. Uncontrollable."
Ryn felt his blood run cold.
Elias went back to eating, as if he hadn't just uttered something that shattered Ryn's entire understanding of his own survival.
Casually, he swirled his drink before taking a sip.
"So tell me, Ryn—how do you think an amateur like you, with barely any knowledge of inscriptions beyond the basics, managed to contain and control a great entity like the abyss?"
Ryn couldn't answer.
Because he didn't know.
Because it didn't make sense.
He had believed, for so long, that he had simply been lucky to survive. That he had stumbled into something bigger than himself by accident.
But Elias was saying that wasn't the case.
That there had never been an accident at all.
That someone—something—had made it happen.
Ryn swallowed hard. "Then… do you know why?"
Elias smiled.
He took his napkin, wiped his mouth clean, and placed it neatly on the table.
Then, he stood.
"Well… I might."
His voice was light, almost teasing.
He stretched, adjusting his robe slightly, and reached into his pocket, tossing a few coins onto the table to pay for his meal.
Then, he turned.
And as he took a step away, he spoke again.
"Grow more, Ryn. Become stronger."
He glanced back, his golden eyes gleaming with something unreadable.
"This way…"
His voice dropped, colder than before, dripping with something far more dangerous than amusement.
"…it will be more delicious to eat you."
And with that, he walked away, leaving the restaurant without a single glance back.
Ryn sat there, unmoving.
The food on his plate was untouched.
His thoughts, however, were in turmoil.
Nothing in his life had ever been a coincidence.
And now, he was certain—
Someone had chosen him.
* * * * * *
In the deep darkness of the room, Elias sat cross-legged on the cold floor, his eyes glowing with a faint golden light. In front of him stood an uneven stone table, upon which lay a small metal piece, glimmering under the flickering torchlight.
Elias gazed at the metal piece in his hands. It was crafted from a rare ore he had received as a reward for passing the academy's entrance exam—an ore with a mysterious quality that others failed to comprehend. But to him, if he could adapt it to his own engravings, he might be able to forge a tool that would grant him a glimpse into the future.
" So, shall we begin?"