Aiden stared into his darkened eyes, and he felt an unspeakable dread creep all over his body.
He could tell that those eyes were not normal, and he could feel something ancient stirring within them.
He couldn't help but check his surroundings, but instead his dread increased. Everything around them looked normal, yet he couldn't hear any outside sound.
He immediately understood that this was Valor's doing. His heartbeat grew faster, and it felt as if he could hear it echoing inside his own mind.
He understood that Valor had cast some sort of barrier around them, but he couldn't help thinking, '...if my guess is correct, then as far as I know, this is the ability of a third-circle knight, Shield. But I don't think he has reached the third circle yet...'
The silence around them grew longer than expected as Aiden was lost in thought, but it was broken by Valor.
"We should go somewhere else. This is not the right place for an important conversation."
When Aiden heard this, his expression nearly crumbled, but he managed to utter a single word. "Okay."
Valor's smile grew wider as he said, "That's great." His eyes returned to their usual grey color, and Aiden guessed, '...it's probably his eye ability...'
In the coffee shop, Aiden and Valor sat across from each other, Aiden drinking an americano and Valor drinking iced coffee.
Then Valor's eyes darkened again, and their surroundings fell silent.
Now Aiden was sure. '...This is his eye ability...'
Valor took a sip of his coffee and said without much expression, "Now, no one will disturb us. I've already told the owner, so feel free to ask any questions you have."
After hesitating for a while, Aiden asked, "How did you know that I know about you?"
Valor merely smiled and, instead of answering directly, said, "Your question is wrong. You should be asking what else I don't know."
When Aiden heard this, a chill ran down his spine. But he calmed himself after thinking, '...If Valor wanted to do anything to me, he wouldn't even need to approach me like this. He could have waited and attacked at the right moment. That means he's after something, and he probably won't do anything to me...'
After this, Aiden relatively calmed down.
But that didn't last long.
"Aiden de Ravenspire Winrose," Valor said.
"You are corrupted."
Aiden almost jumped out of his seat.
He knew what it meant to be corrupted. Corruption came from the Void and from the beings that lurked within it.
Anything beyond that was forbidden. And Aiden also knew that being corrupted and not getting noticed was almost impossible.
If he were truly corrupted, the academy should have noticed long ago.
But hearing it from Valor made it feel unreal.
Still, Aiden calmed himself quickly. Although corruption was one of the cruelest things that could happen to any living being, he was still relatively fine.
That meant there was still time.
For any human, beastman, elf, dragon, or any other living being with higher cognitive ability, it usually took almost a year to be fully corrupted.
So Aiden was sure the academy would be able to resolve it.
But the most important question was—how had no one noticed it? Apart from Valor, of course.
Aiden couldn't be sure. '...Maybe Valor knows because he is a regressor...'
'...So, if I truly am corrupted, and seeing how calm Valor is right now, then I must have been corrupted recently. That means I should go to the academy and get checked… but later...'
After thinking for a while, Aiden asked, "How? How did I get corrupted, and why did no one notice? Well, apart from you."
Valor smirked. "How can you be so clueless? It happened when you entered that forbidden forest."
Then his tone became slightly sarcastic. "And how could no one notice? Well, it's because of your damn ability. It blocks any sign of corruption from others. Of course, except me."
When Aiden heard this, he was visibly shaken.
'...If what Valor is saying is true, then I... I...'
His lips parted, and he let out a forced laugh.
Valor said, "Do you even know what your ability is? I'm pretty sure you don't. Let me tell you—what you're doing right now is foolish. You think your ability helped you hide from detection, and that's why you started this childish game of savior. But that will end the moment someone uses mana sense."
Aiden was shaken even more, but he suddenly said, "But what about Noah Rain Willburn and Nysira Green Duskwind? And what about Alaric and Elric?"
Valor laughed. "Let me tell you—your ability hides your presence, that part is correct. But if someone uses mana sense, they will be able to detect it. That will happen when someone reaches the Shield, the third-circle knight."
"Your friends are not third-circle knights, so of course they wouldn't notice. And as for that couple, it's because they didn't use mana sense."
"If you're asking why—they are prohibited from using mana sense inside the academy unless the principals allow it. And since the principals are using their mana sense 24/7, they don't allow disturbances. Only on special occasions do they permit its use."
When Aiden heard this long explanation, his world crumbled.
But it didn't end there.
Valor laughed again. "But that scene was hilarious. Who would've thought that you'd see someone kissing and start running in embarrassment?"
"You were watching?" Aiden asked through gritted teeth.
"Of course."
Then Valor's expression turned extremely serious.
Aiden couldn't help but think, '...Dude, could you not stick to one mood? What now...?'
But the next moment, Aiden's own expression turned serious too as he heard Valor say:
"Don't you want to know what happened in the previous timeline?"