The Transfer Student

The fracture above the Obsidian Basin had stopped bleeding light.

The Codex hummed gently now, no longer panicked—just wary.

As if the threat wasn't over, only… postponed.

Lyle and Juno stood at the edge of the academy's southern ridge, freshly returned through Quinn's ring.

But the silence in the air wasn't peace.

It was waiting.

Juno glanced sideways. "We've been gone seven days in Quinn's world."

Lyle nodded. "And here…?"

She activated her wristband.

"Ten minutes."

Lyle sighed. "Still freaks me out."

"Time dilation always does."

---

They didn't return to their dorms right away.

Instead, they went to the Observation Spire—one of the few places within the academy that allowed full mana scans without triggering protocol lockdowns.

Instructor Asterion stood near the center panel, his arms crossed. His expression unreadable.

"You're late," he said without turning.

Juno muttered, "Guess that's his way of saying welcome back."

"We were pulled into a thread variant," Lyle said. "Codex interference. Unavoidable."

Asterion turned slowly.

His eyes—usually dark with calculation—flared briefly with gold.

> "Did you see the Gate?"

"Yes," Lyle said. "And someone used it to send an echo into our realm. It wasn't just residual magic. It was alive."

Asterion raised an eyebrow. "The Mirrorborn."

"You know of it?"

"I've killed two."

Lyle blinked.

Juno actually looked impressed.

But Asterion's face had gone tight.

"If a third one came through and survived your encounter, you're now marked. They don't forget. They don't forgive."

---

Before Lyle could ask more, the academy's internal bell rippled across the spire.

A strange tone.

Not an alarm.

Not a call to arms.

Something else.

"Transfer arrival?" Juno asked.

Asterion nodded. "Unscheduled. But sanctioned by the Board."

He turned toward Lyle, eyes narrowing.

"You should come."

---

The Grand Vestibule hadn't been used in nearly a year. Its doors were only opened for dignitaries, evaluations, or extremely high-risk security quarantines.

Today, it opened for one person.

A boy.

Maybe sixteen.

Dressed in plain white robes.

Barefoot.

A bandage wrapped around his left eye. His right? Bright green. Too green. Almost glowing.

He walked through the threshold with the calm of a man taking a seat in a theater—like he'd already seen the show before.

When he looked at Lyle, he smiled.

And said something that froze everyone in the room:

> "It's been a while, Lyle. You still flinch when you lie?"

Juno's blade was half-out of its sheath in an instant.

Asterion stepped in front of Lyle instinctively.

Lyle took a single step forward.

"Who are you?"

The boy tilted his head.

"My name is Kalen."

He pointed at Lyle's chest—at the Codex hidden beneath his coat.

"And I'm what happens when you finish rewriting that."

---

> [Codex Alert: Temporal Paradox Risk]

Thread Origin Detected – Identity: Kalen ???

Relation to Host: Confidential

Thread Status: Post-Rewrite.

Warning: Do not engage.

Juno whispered, "Is this another variant?"

Lyle shook his head slowly. "No… He's not like the Mirrorborn."

And then Kalen smiled wider.

"I'm not here to fight you."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, silver key—etched with a glyph Lyle didn't recognize.

He tossed it to the ground at Lyle's feet.

And the moment it hit—

Lyle's Codex opened on its own.

> [New Chapter Unlocked – "Genesis Rewrite: Phase Zero"]

Warning: Reading will initiate memory convergence.

Proceed?

Lyle didn't answer.

Because the words on the Codex's page…

Were written in his own handwriting.

And the title?

> "How I Lost Everything."