The gates of Heart University stood before them.
Beyond them stretched a sprawling campus filled with towering buildings, open courtyards, and training grounds that seemed to go on for miles. Students moved between buildings, some chatting with friends, others hurrying toward their next classes.
The sound of distant explosions echoed across the grounds.
Ryosen stopped.
"...Was that supposed to happen?"
Aegis glanced toward a training field, where a student had apparently sent another flying into a padded barrier.
"Oh, yeah. Probably."
"Probably?"
"They have medical staff."
Ryosen stared at him.
Aegis shrugged.
"Most of the time."
Ryosen reconsidered entering the university.
Unfortunately, Aegis was already walking through the gates.
"Come on!"
With a quiet sigh, Ryosen followed.
The moment they entered the grounds, Aegis seemed to change.
He walked with a familiarity that Ryosen hadn't seen from him in quite some time. He knew which paths led to the main buildings, which courtyards connected to the training grounds, and which staircases were apparently faster than the others.
He even greeted a passing staff member.
"Morning!"
The man glanced at him.
"...Do I know you?"
Aegis stopped.
Then he laughed awkwardly.
"Uh. Maybe?"
The staff member gave him a strange look before continuing on his way.
Ryosen looked at Aegis.
"Former student, you said?"
"Shut up."
"I haven't said anything."
"Your face did."
Ryosen allowed himself a small smile.
They continued toward the main courtyard, where a large stone monument stood at the center of a circular plaza.
Four inscriptions had been carved into its sides.
MARTIAL DIVISION.
ACADEMIC DIVISION.
APPLIED SCIENCES DIVISION.
HEART STUDIES DIVISION.
Ryosen read each inscription.
"Four divisions."
"Four different paths," Aegis explained. "Not everyone who has a Heart wants to fight. Some want to develop equipment. Others want to study Hearts, their origins, and how they work."
"And the Academic Division?"
"History, theory, strategy, all the things people complain about until they realize they actually need them."
"Sounds like you complained a lot."
"I was a model student."
Ryosen looked at him.
Aegis looked back.
"...A model of what not to do."
"That sounds more believable."
Aegis laughed and continued walking.
They passed the Applied Sciences building first. Through its large windows, Ryosen could see students working on equipment and testing devices under the supervision of instructors.
A little farther away, students gathered outside the Heart Studies building, carrying books and discussing the properties of different Hearts.
Ryosen watched them for a while.
"Do you think they understand what a Heart truly is?"
Aegis glanced at him.
"Some of them, probably. Others are still learning."
"Then perhaps we could learn something here, too."
"Maybe."
Aegis's answer was casual, but Ryosen noticed that he had begun looking at the buildings more carefully.
They eventually reached the Martial Division's training grounds.
Several arenas occupied the space behind the main building. Students practiced their abilities under the watchful eyes of instructors, while others worked in pairs to improve their coordination.
One student stumbled during a sparring match and fell flat on his back.
His opponent immediately offered him a hand.
The fallen student accepted it, stood up, and challenged him to another round.
Ryosen observed them quietly.
"There's something refreshing about this."
"What is?"
"They're allowed to learn from their mistakes."
Aegis turned toward him.
"Well, yeah. That's kind of the point of a school."
Ryosen looked back at the training grounds.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Aegis led him toward another building, one separated from the main training facilities by a short walkway.
"This used to be one of my favorite places."
Inside was a smaller training arena, its floor marked by years of practice. The stands were empty, and sunlight streamed through the high windows.
Aegis stepped through the entrance.
He stopped just beyond the doorway.
Ryosen followed him inside.
"This is where you trained?"
"One of the places."
Aegis walked toward the center of the arena.
"I spent a ridiculous amount of time here. Training sessions, examinations, sparring matches..." He looked around. "I even got suspended from using this place for a while."
Ryosen raised an eyebrow.
"What did you do?"
"Nothing serious."
"What did you do, Aegis?"
"...I may have damaged a wall."
"How?"
"That's not important."
"Was it a load-bearing wall?"
Aegis turned toward him.
"Why would you ask that?"
"Because I would like to know whether you endangered the entire building."
"It was one wall!"
Ryosen closed his eyes.
"I see."
Aegis laughed, the sound echoing through the empty arena.
But as the laughter faded, his gaze drifted toward the far side of the room.
"I remember Isocrates standing over there."
Ryosen followed his gaze.
"He taught here?"
"Sometimes. He wasn't exactly the type to stay in one place for long, but whenever he came back, the instructors made sure to put him in charge of something."
Aegis smiled faintly.
"He was good at it, too. Better than most of them, actually."
"You admired him."
"Everyone did."
Aegis paused.
"Or at least, everyone who knew him."
Ryosen didn't respond.
He understood that distinction all too well.
After a while, they left the arena and continued toward the university's central hall.
A large display occupied the wall near its entrance. It contained photographs, plaques, and records documenting the institution's history.
Ryosen approached it.
"This is quite extensive."
"Yeah. They take their history seriously."
Ryosen scanned the plaques until one caught his attention.
It described a period during which Heart University had suspended its operations. The wording was brief, mentioning a catastrophic loss of personnel and the institution's eventual closure.
But there was no clear explanation for what had caused it.
Ryosen read the passage again.
"Aegis."
"Hm?"
"Come here."
Aegis joined him.
Ryosen pointed toward the plaque.
"Read this."
Aegis leaned closer.
His expression changed.
The plaque described the closure as a consequence of widespread losses among professional Heart users. It mentioned the resulting shortage of instructors and the inability to maintain the university's programs.
Everything it said was technically true.
And yet, something was missing.
Aegis read the passage once more.
"...That's not how I remember it."
Ryosen looked at him.
"What do you remember?"
"Bellerophon."
The name felt strange in the quiet hall.
Aegis stared at the plaque.
"They're describing what happened, but they've left out the reason. Bellerophon was responsible for the deaths of countless professional Heart users. He was the reason places like this lost the people they depended on."
He turned toward Ryosen.
"But there's nothing here about him."
Ryosen examined the display again.
"Perhaps the records were incomplete."
"Maybe."
Aegis didn't sound convinced.
"Or perhaps whoever wrote this didn't know the whole story."
Ryosen fell silent.
He remembered the message they had received.
They do not remember.
They cannot.
The river has changed.
The university had reopened. Its students went about their lives. Its records acknowledged that something terrible had happened, yet the person responsible was nowhere to be found in its history.
It was as though the world had retained the consequences while forgetting their cause.
Ryosen looked at Aegis.
"Do you remember anything else about the closure?"
Aegis shook his head slowly.
"Only what I already told you."
He looked back at the plaque.
"And I don't like that."
For once, Ryosen had no immediate answer.
They remained there for a little longer before finally leaving the central hall.
Outside, the university continued to bustle with life. Students crossed the courtyard, instructors called out instructions, and laughter drifted from the nearby buildings.
Everything seemed normal.
Perhaps that was what bothered Ryosen most.
The world had continued moving forward, even when it no longer remembered what it had lost.
Aegis stood beside him, looking across the courtyard.
"Well," he said eventually, "that was a little more depressing than I expected."
Ryosen glanced at him.
"You brought me here."
"And I stand by that decision."
"Even after discovering that the university's history has inexplicable gaps?"
"Especially after that. Now we have a reason to come back."
Ryosen considered the campus once more.
The students. The divisions. The records.
A place devoted to understanding Hearts might hold answers that neither of them could find alone.
Perhaps it was worth investigating further.
"Let's return to Haven," Ryosen said. "The others should know about this."
Aegis nodded.
"Agreed."
They began walking toward the gates.
Behind them, Heart University carried on with its ordinary day.
And somewhere within its halls, a piece of history remained missing.