CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: Fate’s Second Chance

For the next few days that she didn't come to class, I let a few of my people watch over her place. As much as I wanted to go to her and explain everything, I didn't have the courage to break her peace — not when she seemed to be enjoying the new life that had been given to her.

I allowed myself a rare moment of happiness, quietly savoring the pictures my people sent me—snapshots of her after she'd gone to a salon to cut her hair and then shopped for clothes that suited her taste. I'd made sure she wouldn't have to spend much, pulling a few strings behind the scenes so it looked like she was getting special discounts. Even if I couldn't be by her side just yet, just seeing her like this—free and content—was enough for now.

I wasn't sure, but if I had to guess—seeing how Rina prepared unused boxes before performing the summon—I'd bet she left a decent amount of money for Karina, knowing she was used to living lavishly back in our world. Still, I couldn't help but step in, making sure she wouldn't have to live the way that Karina had. Something I couldn't do before.

When I was just a duke.

A cowardly duke who could only send gifts to her using Keiran—too afraid to stand by her side because she was already someone else's betrothed.

"You're acting like a stalker," my driver remarked casually, his tone light but pointed. I frowned—my gaze drawn to the unmistakable glint of his golden irises.

Aside from Karina's summoning, Sol's sporadic appearances had become an unsettling constant—one I was starting to question more than I cared to admit.

"Says the guy who keeps showing up whenever he feels like it," I shot back, unable to hide the irritation in my voice.

He just chuckled as he parked the car in front of my school and turned to face me. "It's not stalking. I'm just checking if my cowardly child has finally gained some courage," he teased. But before I could fire back, he vanished—leaving my driver staring at me with a confused expression, clearly baffled by the glare I was directing at him.

I shook my head and got out of the car, heading to my first class of the morning. I wasn't sure how long she planned to take a break, but I knew she would eventually come. When I found out she'd cut her hair, I realized that some of the former Karina's memories must have passed on to her as well. Maybe it was her way of defiance—or perhaps she simply wanted to start anew.

"Good morning." I answered every greeting I got from other students that I knew and didn't know—like some sort of mandatory greeting for being the former captain of the fencing club.

For the years that I hadn't gotten my memories back, I lived a life distant from the one I had in the Aelius kingdom. My life here was peaceful—I had a loving family who spoiled me a lot, a kind and healthy mother, and a supportive father. It was as if I had been granted the best of the best after being reincarnated. I grew up carefree and happy—something I never experienced in my past life, where I always had to stay vigilant for my safety.

But there were certain moments when I felt a void in my heart. When I reached the age when dating was allowed, I thought it would fill that emptiness—still, all the relationships I had ended in failure. Not because I didn't love them enough, but somehow, things just fell apart without reason. So, I focused on my fencing career, but I quit that as well when sleepless nights began to plague me, haunted by recurring dreams I couldn't understand. And when I finally recovered all my memories, that was the only time the void in my heart began to fade—when I realized it wasn't emptiness after all, but longing… longing for someone I had been waiting for, for far too long.

"Good morning."

My ears itched at the sound of that soft yet steady voice—so familiar, yet so different. There was no hint of hesitation laced in her tone, and the confident click of her heels echoed through the room as she walked toward her seat. Without a second glance, she settled into the desk right in front of me, her eyes drifting to the window as if she hadn't just done something so completely unlike the former Karina.

I remained slumped over my desk, my head resting on my folded arms as I watched her from behind. My heart pounded wildly—just seeing her this close was enough to set me on edge. It was a feeling I had never experienced with the former Karina before the soul switch.

And I wasn't the only one who noticed the drastic change in her. Even our classmates—most of whom never cared whether she showed up to school or not—now had their eyes on her, their expressions a mix of confusion and admiration. It was as if they were seeing her for the first time, not quite realizing who she had become.

Karina glanced around, noticing the sudden attention she'd drawn. And as if they'd been caught doing something they shouldn't, every pair of eyes—except mine—quickly looked away. The corners of her lips quirked up, and she let out a soft, amused chuckle, the sound light and warm.

That gentle sound almost made me melt. It was soft, effortless—so distinctly her. As she turned her gaze back to the window, a quiet calm settled over her, I knew without a doubt that this was the person I'd been waiting for.

And in that moment, I couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt for every woman I'd ever dated. None of them had ever made me feel like this—like my heart had finally found the one it had been longing for all along, as if the other end of the golden arrow that Cupid shot at me had finally found its pair.

I let my gaze linger on her as she adored the world beyond the glass window, letting myself drown in the sound of my heartbeat as I finally drank my fill of her presence—after years of starving myself from the sight of her, from the moment she was betrothed to another until she disappeared from our world entirely.

"If gazes could melt, she'd probably be a puddle by now."

I rolled my eyes in annoyance when Sol appeared out of nowhere beside me, his hazy form propped casually on my desk. I nearly jumped in surprise—though I'd long since grown used to his habit of showing up uninvited. And since I was the only one who could see him, I couldn't exactly respond without looking insane.

"How are you planning to introduce yourself?" he asked, his tone teasing. As if I could even answer him when no one else could see him—and talking back would only make me look crazy.

My eyes followed him warily when he stood up and snapped his fingers—and in an instant, a faint shimmer of light, invisible to everyone else, wrapped itself around Karina. She didn't seem to notice a thing, her attention still fixed on the window.

"Don't worry," Sol said lightly, noticing my frown. "I'm just giving her back everything she lost."

I wanted to ask what he meant, but the look he gave me made the words stick in my throat. Even with his face blurred and indistinct, there was a warmth in his gaze—one I didn't understand but couldn't ignore.

"I'll leave you alone for now," he said, his voice quieter this time. "But remember—don't waste this chance I gave you. I can't do it twice, even if you live a sinless life from here on out."

And just like that, he was gone—vanishing in the blink of an eye, a heartbeat before our Abnormal Psychology professor walked into the room. The chatter around us faded as everyone settled into their seats, while I remained slumped over my desk.

I thought Professor Eli would start his class immediately, like he always did, but there was a brief moment of silence—as if he'd noticed something off in the room. I glanced at him and almost laughed at the confusion on his face as his eyes landed on Karina, who now seemed to be regretting her drastic change.

"I believe that is my student—Miss Azalena's seat." Professor Eli finally voiced the question that every single person in this room had on their minds, as they all failed to recognize the girl sitting in front of me. "Are you perhaps a new student of mine?" he added, clearly unsure if his eyes were deceiving him.

"…"

I yawned before answering for her—for Karina, since she seemed unsure how to explain her sudden, drastic change.

"She's Karina, sir. She just cut her hair, changed the way she dressed, and finally revealed her pretty eyes."

And for the first time, I met my Karina Azalena's eyes—her gaze filled with uncertainty and intrigue, as if she were trying to piece together who I was. As if she had no recollection of me, even though I was the last person the former Karina had met.

"I forgot to mention—I didn't give that memory on purpose."

I nearly jumped out of my seat when Sol appeared beside me again, his voice low and amused as he explained why Karina was looking at me like that.

"I purposely blocked some of her memories from getting through… to make the story more interesting," he added with a mischievous purr before vanishing into thin air once again.

For a moment, we stayed locked in each other's gaze—as if she were sizing me up, while I simply wanted to take in the sight of her for as long as I could. But the moment was cut short when Professor Eli and our classmates broke the silence, their voices rising in unison.

"She's who?"

I couldn't help the grin tugging at my lips when I caught the faint blush dusting her cheeks, realizing she'd been staring at me for longer than she probably intended. Karina looked away and answered them.

"It's as this man said," she replied politely, gesturing toward me with her thumb.

My frown deepened as questions poured into my mind like a heavy rain, while the room erupted into a flurry of compliments about her transformation — their words subtle but unmistakably laced with criticisms of her past self… the person they didn't know had been someone entirely different.

Didn't she read Karina's story? How could she not recognize me as the Duke of the North? How much of the former Karina's memory of me has been erased?

I chuckled softly as those questions clouded my mind before I let my fingertips brush gently against her back, a light touch meant to catch her attention. She turned slightly toward me, her eyes meeting mine.

"What?" she asked, her voice soft and gentle.

Tilting my head, still hunched over my desk, I murmured with a hint of mischief, "Kai, Alaric, or Ashford. Choose one."

Her brows knit together in confusion. "Why?"

Her unsure response made me straighten my back, resting my chin on my hand as I stared at her with mock seriousness. "Calling me 'this man' sounds so distant, don't you think? We've been classmates for three years now—surely you know my name by now. We've been seatmates since freshman year."

She looked at me, her eyes widening slightly—quiet astonishment flickering across her face, as if my name finally sparked recognition. Or perhaps… not recognition of me, but of the name itself. After all, she had never truly met me in this form.

Back in our world, I had always made sure to avoid crossing paths with her. For one reason—because I feared that if I got too close, I wouldn't be able to hold back my feelings, and might end up committing treason for kidnapping the future empress.

I've always been aware of the selfishness lurking within me—a sinful, untamed part of myself that I kept tightly restrained for years, a side I could never take pride in. And she was the only one who ever held the power to set it free.

For a moment, her eyes lingered on me—searching, remembering. I could almost see the flicker of recognition, as if she were sifting through fragments of memory, piecing together every fleeting impression and subtle clue the former Karina had left behind. And in that quiet, thoughtful gaze, I wondered just how much of my past self she truly saw in this version of me.

"Pick." The word slipped from her lips, soft and steady, carried on the breath of a refreshing exhale.

I stayed silent, quietly amused by how effortlessly she turned the tables.

"You pick what I should call you," she added, her soft voice barely more than a whisper. When I stayed silent, she simply turned to face the front, her attention settling on Professor Eli as he began the discussion.

The smile on my lips lingered as my eyes rested on her back—drawn to every small movement she made as she listened attentively to the class. I often wondered how my devotion to this person remained so unwavering—so absolute—that when Sol granted me one wish for all the good deeds I had accomplished as the Duke of the North, I knew without question that I would follow her, even into the deepest part of the abyss.

She only saved my life once—and I've long since repaid that debt by staying at her side, shielding her from every danger that crossed her path—for being a noble whose warmth knew no bounds and whose kindness stretched so far that even commoners adored her for her unwavering noblesse oblige.

I should have stopped there—with gratitude. Yet my feelings run deep, flowing through my veins and carved into my very bones. That gratitude bloomed into something else—something impossible to erase. Like a moth drawn to a flame, like a siren luring fishermen—I found myself willingly entering Cupid's lair.

She wasn't the most beautiful woman I had ever met, yet everything about her was compelling—she had me completely enthralled. It was something I had never felt toward the former Karina, who shared the same face as her—and yet they were nothing alike. There was a fire in her eyes, a quiet strength in the way she carried herself, and gentleness in her voice that felt like home. As if my heart were bound to her soul in a way I couldn't explain—and perhaps never wanted to question.

"You seem like a completely different person now, Miss Azalena. It appears that whatever was troubling you before has been resolved." Professor Eli's parting words jolted me back to my senses.

The class had ended, yet not a single word of the day's lesson had settled in my mind—as if I had been there in body, but my thoughts were worlds away. When she casually gathered her things and prepared to leave, my body moved on its own, instinctively reaching out and grabbing her wrist firmly—not wanting to let go.

I kept my head down, mentally cursing myself for acting without thinking. Yet she didn't pull away. Instead, she simply stood in front of me, silent—as if waiting for me to speak. My heart swelled at her touch, the warmth of her skin against mine—and the simple fact that she didn't recoil the way she had when Achilles Dimitri dared to touch her.

"Kairos." I spoke the name I never thought I would use again—not to conceal my identity, but in the desperate hope that it would make her remember me. I looked up and met her gaze, masking my nervousness behind a smile. "It's an alias I made for you to call me."

I thought there was no room left for more chaos in my heart and mind from just a simple touch. But that was before she gifted me a smile—a sweet, genuine smile that unraveled me completely, leaving me hopelessly and willingly done for.