As Zael entered AEGIS PRIME University, he realized things weren't exactly as he remembered.
At first, he thought the academy had changed. Then he realized the truth.
It wasn't the university.
It was him.
Barely a year had passed since he left for camp, yet the difference between then and now was almost unreal. Back then, he was still a weak freshman trying to survive in a world far bigger than himself.
Now he was a Level 90 Second Class Change Peak awakener.
A monster by student standards.
Even most lecturers in the academy would lose against him now.
The thought felt surreal.
Zael walked quietly through the familiar pathways of the academy before eventually arriving at the dormitory building. Thankfully, his room was still registered under his name.
As he stepped inside, silence greeted him.
The room looked almost untouched, as if time itself had paused while he was away.
Zael slowly placed his bag down and looked around.
At the beginning, he had shared this room with Zane. Returning here now made his brother's disappearance feel even more real somehow.
The emptiness of the room only emphasized it further.
For a brief moment, Zael just stood there quietly.
A lot had changed.
Too much.
And somehow, despite becoming stronger than he ever imagined possible, the absence left behind by Zane still remained.
Zael had barely laid down before a knock sounded from the door.
He frowned slightly before getting up and opening it.
Lily stood outside.
"Huh, when did you arrive?" Zael asked.
"Just now," Lily replied casually before walking into the room without waiting for permission. "I decided to check on you first."
Zael closed the door behind her with a small shake of his head.
"Thanks," he said as he sat down on Zane's bed.
Lily's eyes briefly wandered around the room before dimming slightly.
"Do you think he's okay?" she asked quietly.
"Who? Zane?" Zael replied immediately. "Of course he'll be fine. He's pretty strong and you know that."
Outwardly, his tone remained calm.
Internally though, another thought crossed his mind.
He's my clone. Of course I'd know if he died.
Even now, despite the distance between them, Zael could still faintly sense Zane's existence. Barely. Like a thin thread stretched across worlds.
But that was all.
The connection between them had weakened tremendously after Zane disappeared.
Still, the fact that Zane was his clone remained one of Zael's deepest secrets. One he had absolutely no intention of revealing anytime soon.
"I hope so," Lily muttered softly before changing the topic. "Oh right, the Dean asked for us."
"The Dean?" Zael frowned. "Why?"
Lily shrugged. "No idea. Maybe he heard about your exploits at camp."
She snickered lightly afterward.
Zael groaned dramatically and leaned back slightly. "I just wanted to rest…"
"Just try, okay?" Lily replied while rolling her eyes. "Even if we haven't spent much time here and we'll probably leave soon without knowing whether we'll ever return…"
Her tone softened slightly afterward.
"For now, he's still technically our dean."
"So at least try to show him a little respect."
"Fine," Zael said with a sigh. "But only because you asked."
Lily smirked slightly. "How generous of you."
"So when is this meeting happening?" Zael asked.
"Later in the evening."
"Alright then."
Silence settled briefly afterward.
Lily casually sat on the edge of the desk while Zael leaned back against the wall. After everything that happened at camp, moments like this felt strangely peaceful.
"You know," Lily suddenly said, "it still feels weird being back here."
Zael nodded slightly. "Yeah."
"A few months ago we were struggling just to survive practical classes."
"And now?" Zael asked.
Lily laughed softly. "Now we could probably accidentally destroy one of the training halls."
Zael snorted faintly at that.
Honestly, she wasn't wrong.
The current him compared to the freshman who entered the academy months ago was like comparing two completely different people.
Even Lily herself had changed tremendously.
"You've gotten stronger too," Zael pointed out.
Lily blinked before smiling lightly. "Coming from you, I'm not sure if that's a compliment anymore."
Zael raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means your standards are broken," she replied immediately. "You casually fight people way above your level and somehow win. Normal people don't do that."
Zael looked genuinely thoughtful for a second.
"…Fair enough."
Lily rolled her eyes before her gaze wandered around the room again.
"It still feels emptier without Zane though," she muttered quietly.
Zael's expression paused briefly.
"…Yeah."
The room fell silent afterward.
Then her expression became slightly curious.
"Still…" she muttered. "You really changed a lot."
Zael raised an eyebrow. "How so?"
"You used to overthink everything."
Lily looked at him carefully afterward.
"Now it feels like nothing really shakes you anymore."
Zael was silent for a moment at that.
Eventually, he answered quietly, "A lot happened."
That simple sentence alone carried more weight than Lily realized.
The battlefield.
The bloodline.
The cosmic erasure.
Kael.
The mysterious caller.
Even now, it still felt unreal sometimes.
Lily noticed the brief change in his expression and wisely didn't press further.
Instead, she stretched lazily before standing up.
"Well, anyway," she said casually, "you should probably sleep before the meeting. You look like someone who hasn't rested in days."
"That obvious?"
"Very."
Zael chuckled faintly.
Then Lily suddenly paused near the door before glancing back at him.
"Oh right."
"What?"
A teasing smile appeared on her face.
"You going to tell Aurelia that you almost caused a public incident at the station?"
Zael blinked once.
"…How do you already know about that?"
Lily's grin widened.
"The capital forums are really active right now."