Chapter 11: The Quiet Years

Chapter 11: The Quiet Years

Two years passed.

Not in grand gestures or world-shaking events. But in silence. In habits. In stillness.

Time doesn't always rush by — sometimes, it crawls. Especially when you're waiting for something you don't understand.

Chris didn't really wait, though. He just… was.

Each day bled into the next. Wake up. Get checked. Get scanned. Sit through pointless briefings. Get asked the same questions with slightly different words.

"Any changes in the Eye?" "Any dreams?" "Any emotional surges?" "Any… contact?"

Every time he answered, he gave them the same thing: indifference. Some truth. Some silence.

And they gave him more time.

More nothing.

Chris stared out from the small balcony of his assigned quarters.

It was a nice facility, honestly. Too nice.

You'd almost forget it was a gilded cage.

The sun dipped beneath the skyline, casting long shadows across the academy grounds — or, as they called it, The Observation Wing of Arcadian Artifact Research Division: Tier 1 Secure Zone.

He called it: "The Fancy Prison."

The Eye floated beside him, as it always did.

Silent. Waiting.

In the last two years, the Eye had only grown heavier. Not in weight — it still hovered effortlessly — but in presence.

Its black sclera, with tendrils of shadow licking outward like smoke underwater, sometimes pulsed without rhythm.

Sometimes it blinked — a slow, eerie motion that didn't close entirely.

Sometimes it stared so intently, Chris wondered if it was learning… or remembering.

And the sync?

Still climbing.

32%. 38%. 43%.

Always slow. Always steady.

In those two years, Chris thought about the Amender a lot.

That calm guy with cryptic lines and that whole "you're not broken" speech.

"You don't even know me," Chris muttered to himself one night.

"That coldness? That's just who I am."

He tapped his temple.

"Lived two lives, remember?"

"Died saving a cat and a girl. Reborn here in this world full of stats and monsters and magic."

"I've had time. Time to reflect. Time to understand."

He paused.

"I'm not broken. I just… don't react the same."

Grief was a weird thing.

It was there. But it didn't scream at him.

It hummed. Quietly. Like a song heard in another room.

He felt it — the weight of loss. The ache of knowing his parents were gone.

But it didn't crush him.

Didn't bring tears.

Didn't stop his breath.

It just sat there — part of him. Like a familiar scar.

Still, Chris wasn't entirely idle during these years.

He read. A lot. About Arcadia. About Primordials. About Essence Flow Theory and Artifact Interaction Studies.

He learned how to test for Mana Affinity and began meditating, mostly out of boredom.

And when the Eye let him — he inspected. Constantly.

Every day, he [inspected] everything he could.

Even himself.

[Status: Chris Velhart]

Species: Human (Modified)Origin: Transmigrated SoulTitle: Holder of the [Eye of ???]Affinity: ???Skills: [Inspect Lv. MAX], [Observer's Calm Lv. 1], [Conceptual Anchor Lv. ???]Sync Rate: 47%Trait: ???

[Observer's Calm] was new.

It came after one of his meditations.

He didn't know what triggered it.

But he suspected the Eye.

The skill made his mind sharper, emotions steadier. It didn't numb — it filtered.

And [Conceptual Anchor]? That one didn't even have a description. He guessed it had to do with his transmigrated soul and his strange resistance to the Eye's madness.

One day, Chris looked into a mirror and barely recognized the boy he was.

He had grown taller, leaner, his expression calm but not hollow.

Not cold. Just clear.

"I'm not some protagonist," he whispered to his reflection.

"I'm not some broken doll, either."

He leaned closer.

"I'm me. Two lives. Two sets of memories. One person."

And for once…

That truth didn't feel so heavy.

At night, the Eye pulsed faintly.

Chris sat cross-legged in front of it. Like he often did.

"I still don't know what you are."

"I don't know what I am becoming, either."

He reached a hand forward, palm up.

The Eye floated downward — resting just above his palm.

"But… we're stuck with each other, aren't we?"

For the first time, the Eye blinked with… warmth?

Or maybe Chris imagined it.

Either way, he smiled.

The world outside still feared the Eye.

But Chris?

Chris was starting to understand it.

And maybe — just maybe — it was starting to understand him.

[Sync Level: 47% → 50%]

[Milestone Reached: Dual Identity Detected]

[New Trait Unlocked: Mirrorbound Will]

[Awaiting Activation...]