🪞 Chapter 86
"Sometimes the greatest enemy you'll face… is the version of you who gave up."
🌀 Scene 1: The Mirror of Time
Aeren stood at the edge of the abyss beneath the throne—staring into a floating mirror made of fractured timeglass, suspended by gears that clicked with each heartbeat.
Within it, stood another Aeren.
But this wasn't just a reflection.He was taller, his eyes burning with red-and-silver flame, cloaked in timefire armor, crowned with broken gears.
"So… you're the one trying to fix everything again," the mirror-version said."You forget, I was you… before you lost your edge."
Aeren blinked.
"Who are you?"
"I'm what you would become… if you stop trying to be good."
Then the Mirror Aeren stepped forward—out of the glass.
⚔️ Scene 2: Self vs Self
The real Aeren drew back as his darker self charged forward with temporal blades in both hands.
Each strike came from three moments at once—the past, present, and 2 seconds in the future.
Aeren used Echo Blink, but his mirror matched it exactly.
"I know your tricks," Mirror Aeren said."I created them."
Seris tried to interfere—but the mirror realm pushed her out with a force wall of time.
"You have to beat him alone!" she shouted.
Aeren took a deep breath, closing his eyes.
Then… he let the fight flow.
Instead of reacting, he let the fight teach him.
His mind-reading activated—analyzing Mirror Aeren's every twitch, breath, and gaze.
Then, when the Mirror paused to deliver a "finisher," Aeren simply said:
"I already saw this moment."
And struck before the Mirror did.
💥 Scene 3: The Shattering and the Gift
With one well-timed Chrono Shatter, Aeren reversed the Mirror's attack, making it miss entirely.
The mirror-self staggered.
"So… you still have that spark.""Good. You'll need it."
Before fading, Mirror Aeren stepped back into the mirror—leaving behind a relic:A glowing gear with a shattered loop—called:
🧩 The Forgotten Gear of Origins
Ability Unlocked: Paradox LockAeren can freeze a target's time path, locking them to a specific moment. They will repeat that moment until broken externally. (Cooldown: very high)
As he took the relic, the abyss beneath him sealed.
Seris caught him just as he fell back, gasping.
"You beat yourself?""No," Aeren said."I learned from him."
🪦 Scene 4: Elsewhere – The Return of Elarian
In Nexilis, the First Seeker Elarian marched forward in silence.
His body bore clockmarks, his hands fused with relic shards.
Dozens of corrupted elite Seekers, known as the Shroud Legion, followed him.
"Send word," he told the Veilmaster."The Heart has awakened. So has the True War.It is time to destroy Sinjai Academy and retrieve the boy."
Back in Sinjai, the diamond-tier instructors received a coded alert.
"Crimson Code: Black Spiral.World-class threat is approaching. Shield the capital."
But they had no idea what they were truly up against.
Only Anshi, watching over a recovering Aeren, whispered to herself:
"Something terrible is coming…And Aeren's the only one who can stop it."
🔚 End of Chapter 86