The aftermath of the sky-breaking event still lingered.
Jiwoon lay unconscious in Kaelya's arms, his small form burning with faint traces of divine residue. The mark on his chest had dimmed—but not disappeared.
"Is he… still him?" Vera asked.
Kravein crossed his arms. "Define 'him.' He's a god with memory issues in a child's body."
Shiro, the white fox, whimpered at Jiwoon's side.
Suddenly, a new presence descended—one they hadn't felt in years.
A lone figure approached from the broken edge of the cliff.
Silver cloak. Barefoot. Eyes like dusk.
And… not a shred of recognition in his gaze.
Jiwoon stirred. His eyes blinked open, locking onto the figure.
"…Eden?"
The man tilted his head. "You know me?"
Jiwoon's voice trembled. "You… saved me once. Before the System."
But the man simply looked away.
"I've never seen you before."
🔹 [SYSTEM NOTICE: Echo Memory Conflict Detected]
🔹 One of Jiwoon's oldest allies no longer remembers him due to an unknown timeline fracture.
Kaelya's spear twitched in her grip. "This is a trap."
"No," Jiwoon whispered, voice full of something broken. "It's worse… He's real, but the bond is gone."
As the tension rose, Eden lifted a hand—not to attack, but to offer something:
A crystal. Faintly pulsing with familiar sin energy.
"This belongs to someone important," he said. "Maybe you'll know what it means."
Jiwoon reached out slowly, heart pounding.
The moment their fingers brushed—
FLASH!
A vision burst through Jiwoon's mind:
An old battlefield.
A promise made under a falling star.
Two boys swearing to rewrite fate together.
Then—darkness.