Chapter 28: Eiden's Courage

Eiden followed Ruel from the corner of his eyes as the guy approached them. Lyra hadn't noticed yet she was sitting opposite Eiden, and Ruel was coming from behind her back. For a moment, Eiden tried to convince himself that maybe Ruel was just passing by. Just coincidence.

But that hope was crushed the second he caught Ruel's eyes. The glare was unmistakable. A pit began forming in Eiden's stomach. He tried to remain calm, but a tight knot had already formed in his chest. Even though he had a system backing him up now, he wasn't in his prime physically or mentally. He wasn't weak-willed, not by a long shot. But physical strength? That was a different story.

Ruel was an athlete, someone who clearly worked out and probably had a good amount of experience in fights. Eiden wasn't some bullied nerd either; he did have that one time when he got into a scuffle in grade school, but it had been so long ago he could barely even recall how that ended.