The next morning, the university looked exactly the same.
Smiling students.
Busy walkways.
Sunlight on rooftops.
But Kaelen knew better.
Something had changed.
---
He stood outside Room B-214, watching students go inside.
Whitlock hadn't shown anything yesterday — not to them.
But Kaelen had seen it. That flicker behind his eyes. The same kind of flicker the monster had before it vanished.
> He's not human. But why hide as a professor?
A gust of wind stirred the leaves nearby.
Kaelen walked in, head low, eyes watching.
---
Aria was already there.
She didn't glance at him this time.
But her hand rested near her neck — fingers grazing the pendant under her shirt.
> She knows something is off too, Kaelen thought.
---
"Good morning," Whitlock said, entering the room.
He wore the same long coat. Same cold smile.
But Kaelen noticed it now — the way his steps didn't quite match the floor's sound. Just slightly… delayed. Off rhythm. Wrong.
The professor turned toward the board, writing.
Kaelen whispered without looking away:
> "That man… is dangerous."
Aria turned her head slightly. "…What?"
Kaelen didn't answer.
> Too soon. She wouldn't believe me.
---
After class, Kaelen stayed behind. Watched Whitlock walk into his office.
The door shut.
But Kaelen saw — for a split second — a shadow move behind him. Not his. Bigger. Something inside him.
His hand went to his chest.
The Soul Crystal pulsed once.
Slow.
Warning.
> I need answers.
---
Meanwhile — Across Campus…
Riven Cross slammed his locker shut.
Another rejection letter.
Third part-time job this week.
No time for sleep. No money for food. Just pushing through life like a machine.
"Figures," he muttered. "Why does anything even matter anymore?"
He started walking — but stopped.
Someone had written something on his locker.
Words, in red ink:
> "The crown is calling. You were chosen."
He frowned. "What the hell…?"
He looked around.
No one.
Just wind.
But as he walked away… his fingers began to tingle.
Like energy was curling just beneath his skin.
---
Back in the Library
Kaelen sat at the back table, flipping through Earth books on human history and mythology.
It was overwhelming.
So many wars. So much science. No talk of spirit, magic, or soul power.
> How do they survive without meaning? he wondered.
A shadow passed near his table.
He looked up.
Aria.
She placed a book on the shelf and paused.
"…I saw you behind the sports hall last night," she said softly.
Kaelen didn't answer.
"You saved someone," she added.
Still silence.
Finally, she sat down.
"I'm not stupid. I know there's something wrong with Whitlock. And… I've been hearing a voice in my dreams."
Kaelen looked at her now.
That was the first time her eyes looked vulnerable. Scared.
> "What kind of voice?" he asked.
She hesitated. Then whispered:
> "It says… 'Return the tide to the Moon.' I don't know what that means. But it's the same every night."
Kaelen's heart sank.
> That's the Water Crystal. It's calling her.
But he didn't say it yet.
He just nodded. "…You're not crazy."
Her eyes widened slightly. "You believe me?"
He smiled faintly — a rare, soft expression.
> "I do."
For a second, something shifted between them. Not friendship. Not love. But understanding.
> Two souls, waking up.
---
In a dark hallway deep below campus…
Whitlock stood before a mirror.
But the reflection was not his own.
It was a black, horned figure with glowing red eyes.
"The Soul Crystal breathes," it whispered.
"The pieces are waking. Shall I strike?"
Whitlock didn't blink.
> "Not yet. Let them find each other. It'll make the breaking… sweeter."