Harvie didn't sleep that night either.
Even after the duel, even after Edna's soft words by the railing—his mind wouldn't rest.
He kept thinking about that moment when the spear almost cut him, and how easily he dodged it.
Too easily.
> "I'm changing," he whispered to himself. "Again."
---
The next morning, the academy city of Rivenfold was quiet. Mist floated around the towers, and sunlight peeked through the stained-glass windows.
Harvie walked alone through the halls of the main academy building. He had no classes. No friends.
Only one goal.
> "I need to know what the Seal is doing to me."
He went down. Past the student dorms. Past the library. Past the gates marked Authorized Only.
The system inside him buzzed.
It didn't want him here.
But Harvie pushed forward.
At last, he reached a locked door with no handle. It had a strange glowing pattern—like veins spreading from a beating heart.
He placed his hand on it.
Click.
It opened.
---
The Hidden Level – Deep Archives
The room was cold. Dark. Rows of books and broken weapons lined the walls. Old scrolls floated in sealed glass tubes.
Harvie stepped forward and felt a chill run down his spine.
> "Something happened here," he whispered. "A long time ago."
A voice behind him answered.
"You shouldn't be here."
Harvie turned sharply. An old man stood in the shadows. His robes were torn, but his eyes were sharp and golden.
"I'm Professor Kelvan," he said. "Keeper of the Deep Archives."
Harvie stayed quiet.
Kelvan walked closer, eyeing the glow in Harvie's left hand.
"The Seal… it's chosen you."
Harvie tensed.
Kelvan didn't attack. He sighed.
"Seal-bearers always come here," he said. "Curious. Desperate. Dying."
Harvie's eyes narrowed. "You know what it is, don't you?"
The professor nodded.
"Yes. I've studied every Seal. There are seven. Yours is the most dangerous."
Harvie's heart pounded. "Why?"
Kelvan looked at him for a long time. Then he spoke slowly.
"Because your Seal doesn't just store power... it rewrites time."
Harvie felt cold.
Kelvan continued, voice low.
> "Every Seal-bearer hears the voice. Feels the loops. But if they remember too much—if they hold onto the pain of every timeline—they go mad. Their minds crack."
Harvie clenched his fists.
Kelvan looked sad.
"You're already close, aren't you?"
Harvie didn't answer.
"You remember things others forgot. You speak to people who died yesterday. You bleed memories, Harvie. And if you don't let go… the Seal will break you."
Harvie finally spoke. "Then what am I supposed to do?"
Kelvan stepped closer. He touched Harvie's chest lightly.
"Choose. Forget… or fall."
Silence fell between them.
Then Kelvan whispered something even more terrifying.
> "The Seal rewrites time. But time always wants balance."
> "Every death you undo… something else breaks."
---
Later that day
Harvie returned to his dorm room. His legs were weak. His head hurt.
> "Forget or fall."
The words kept repeating.
He opened the system window. There was a new message.
> [MENTAL INTEGRITY: 72%]
[Warning: Emotional Collapse Detected.]
[Memory Core Saturated.]
He stared at the numbers.
Then, slowly, he closed the system and sat on the bed.
A knock came at the door.
"Harvie?" It was Edna.
He didn't move.
The door creaked open. She stepped inside.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
He nodded, not looking at her.
She sat beside him, not speaking.
And for a moment, just sitting there beside her… the numbers in his mind didn't seem so loud.