After saying goodbye to his family, Enrico passed through the mansion gates and followed Angela through the corridors of the royal castle of Sanos. The building stood at the far end of the city, in an area where the kingdom's most powerful mages and knights were concentrated. Its walls were decorated with the royal family's crests, and the spacious corridors conveyed a sense of authority that Enrico hadn't encountered even in the mansions of the most influential nobles.
It was his first time entering that place. Although he knew about many events related to the kingdom, he had never had the opportunity to visit the king's residence in person.
'This is my first time in the royal castle of Sanos...'
[Well, it makes sense that it's your first time. After all, you're not that important.]
'Your attempt to annoy me isn't working. Instead, try making my life more difficult, because that's the only thing you're actually good for.'
[You speak as if I don't do that constantly.]
'Exactly. At least you recognize your talent.'
The System remained silent for a few moments, as if trying to decide whether it was worth continuing the argument. Enrico, meanwhile, maintained a calm expression as he followed Angela.
Shortly afterward, the two arrived in front of a large door guarded by two guards. As soon as they recognized the woman, they straightened their posture and gave a brief greeting before opening the way. They showed no surprise at the visitors' arrival.
Upon entering, Enrico found a spacious room furnished elegantly. In the center, Virelle was sitting in a chair, drinking coffee while flipping through some documents. Upon noticing the two arrivals, she raised her eyes and let out a small smile.
"Enrico, it's been a month since I last saw you. It seems you've grown quite a bit."
The teacher placed her cup on the table and examined him for a few moments. Her comment wasn't referring only to the boy's height. Since their last meeting, she had also noticed changes in his posture and the way he behaved.
"Professor Virelle, it's good to see you again."
Enrico replied, slightly bowing his head before turning his attention to the man sitting near the window.
"And, of course, it's an honor to be in your presence, King Alaric."
The monarch, who had been silently observing their reunion until then, rested his arms on the chair's armrests. His eyes showed curiosity, but his expression remained serious.
"It's good to meet you too, boy. I've heard you've been doing many things at Astrong. From what I've been told, your arrival at the academy brought about some unexpected changes."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"I've also heard that you know about future events. I imagine you understand why we need to talk about this."
"I imagine so."
"Don't worry. Hao has placed a barrier around us. No one outside will be able to hear our conversation."
As soon as the king finished speaking, Enrico sensed a presence behind him. His instincts reacted immediately, prompting him to turn around and check who had approached.
It was Hao, the director of Astrong Academy.
The man had one hand resting on his chin, observing Enrico with such obvious interest that he seemed to have forgotten to greet him. Unlike Alaric, who tried to maintain a formal demeanor, Hao made no effort to hide his curiosity. His eyes roamed over the boy as if he were trying to discover everything he could simply by examining him.
Enrico knew that expression well. He had already seen Hao show similar interest on other occasions, but this time, the director's curiosity seemed to have gone beyond all limits.
"If I could contact my brother, he would come running back to meet you, Enrico."
Enrico raised his eyebrows slightly.
"That's a great compliment, Director."
"I don't know if I'd consider that a compliment. After all, you never know what my brother might do when he gets curious. He has the terrible habit of turning anything interesting into a problem for the people around him."
Virelle let out a discreet sigh upon hearing that, while Alaric shook his head as if he were already accustomed to that kind of comment.
Hao, however, seemed genuinely amused.
Enrico also understood why. The director's brother had reached the Tenth Circle and had been bored for years ever since. For someone with such power, finding something new capable of awakening his curiosity was probably a rare occurrence. If he discovered that a boy knew the future, it wouldn't be strange for him to try to meet him immediately.
"Speaking of which."
Enrico spoke, turning his attention back to the king.
"A vampire has reached the Tenth Circle, so your brother will probably want to talk to him, won't he? But tell me, have you accepted the alliance with the vampires?"
Hao's smile faded a little. Alaric, meanwhile, intertwined his fingers and exchanged a brief glance with Virelle before answering.
"...Yes, you're right about that. As for the vampires, we had to accept the alliance. I'm not willing to watch two individuals from the Tenth Circle fight fiercely. Our world can withstand battles between Ninth Circle beings, but we don't know what would happen in a confrontation between those above that level."
The answer didn't seem to surprise Enrico. In fact, he had already expected the king to make that decision. Even so, he looked away for a few moments, recalling what he had witnessed in the original story.
In that future, he had witnessed at least seven battles involving beings of that level. The experience had allowed him to understand that the problem wasn't just the amount of energy released during the confrontations. Tenth Circle beings were capable of altering the very laws of reality through their magical affinities, making it impossible to predict all the consequences of a fight between them.
"Well, perhaps the world can't directly withstand a fight like that, but it might automatically send the two of them somewhere they wouldn't cause damage to itself."
Alaric narrowed his eyes, reflecting on the possibility.
"Are you saying the world itself could interfere in a battle of that level?"
"It's just a possibility. I can't guarantee it would happen that way."
Hao stroked his chin, apparently even more interested. Unlike the king, who had to consider the political and military consequences of every decision, the director seemed primarily focused on the magical possibilities involved.
"How interesting. You've probably witnessed battles of that level before."
He tilted his head, examining Enrico once more.
"Now I'm quite curious to know how strong you were."
Those were exactly the words Enrico wanted to hear.
Ever since arriving at the castle, he had known that he couldn't simply tell the whole truth about the future. He needed to reveal enough information to convince those people that his knowledge was real, but at the same time, he had to avoid letting them discover details he wasn't prepared to explain yet.
After all, the story they knew had been altered by the Constellations. Enrico took a deep breath before answering.
"Well, let's just say I wasn't very strong. Back then, I didn't care about training and ended up being expelled from Astrong."
"What?"
The exclamation came from Virelle.
The teacher, who had been following the conversation with a calm expression until then, placed her cup on the table with slightly more force than she had intended. Alaric also showed surprise, while Hao lost his smile for a moment.
Their reaction was understandable. They were standing before a boy who had demonstrated unusual abilities, possessed knowledge of the future, and seemed to have the potential to reach extraordinary levels of power. The idea that an earlier version of him had been expelled from Astrong Academy for not taking training seriously was difficult to reconcile with what they knew.
Virelle was the first to regain her composure.
"Wait a moment. Are you saying that, in the original future, you were expelled from the academy because you didn't train?"
"Yes. At least, that's what happened to me in that future."
"But why?"
She frowned.
"Did you commit some serious offense, or were you simply unable to keep up with the other students?"
"You'll understand when you see my memories."
Enrico said nothing more. Instead, he let his shoulders droop slightly and adopted a sad expression, as if remembering that part of his life were painful.
"I know this is disappointing. If you believed I would become a great hero, I have to say that not taking my training seriously was one of the greatest regrets of my life."
The silence that followed was different from the previous one. The initial surprise gave way to a sense of sadness, especially on Virelle's face. Imagining Enrico wasting his opportunities and only realizing his mistake when it was already too late was unpleasant.
Alaric also seemed to understand the weight of that confession. Although he didn't know all the details of the boy's life, he could tell there was something more behind his words.
"We can't change the past, but if you truly had the opportunity to witness that future, we can learn from the mistakes that were made."
Virelle decided to add to the king's words.
"I agree, and I hope you aren't repeating the same mistakes now."
Enrico looked at her and smiled discreetly.
"Don't worry, Professor. I don't intend to waste this second chance."
Hao observed the exchange without interrupting them. Then, he moved away from the wall and walked toward Enrico.
"Well, I think we've talked enough. If we want to understand what happened in that future, we need to examine your memories."
The director raised one hand, and a thin layer of magical energy began to form above the boy's head. Then, he took out a small magic stone and positioned it in front of Enrico's forehead.
"I'll use this stone as an intermediary to access your memories. The barrier I've created will help keep the energy concentrated and prevent the information from spreading throughout the room. There shouldn't be any problems, but I need you to remain still during the process."
"Understood."
Enrico closed his eyes for a moment.
Before that meeting, he had asked the System to show only a few memories from the original Enrico's life, specifically those that had occurred near the end of the world. All the other memories were to remain blocked, preventing Hao from discovering information he didn't want to reveal. Such as the Infernal Academy arc. He had his own plans for that arc, which could allow him to reach another level.
[I hope you know what you're doing.]
'Me too.'
As soon as Hao touched the magic stone to his forehead, Enrico felt a strange sensation of detachment. It was as if his consciousness were being pulled out of his own body, leaving behind everything he knew.
For a few moments, he couldn't distinguish what was happening. The room, the voices, and even the sensation of having a body began to disappear, replaced by a silent darkness.
Then, he opened his eyes.
Before him was his own body, motionless, while Hao held him to prevent him from falling.
'Wait... Is that my body?'
[Yes. And now the real Enrico's soul will enter it.]
Enrico watched Hao place his unconscious body on a bed created with barrier magic. The director acted carefully, checking that the boy was in a safe position before stepping away.
However, his expression had changed.
Hao frowned and kept his eyes fixed on Enrico's body, as if he had noticed something he hadn't expected to find. Virelle, who was observing the procedure beside the bed, immediately noticed the change.
"What happened, Hao?"
The director didn't answer immediately. Instead, he brought his hand closer to Enrico's head and tried to sense the energy he had encountered again.
"There's an extremely powerful barrier in his mind. I don't know exactly what it is, but someone placed something very powerful there to protect him."
"A barrier in his mind?"
Alaric rose from his chair.
"Can you remove it?"
"Not easily. And honestly, I don't recommend trying to do so without understanding its origin."
Hao narrowed his eyes, concentrating on the sensation coming from inside the boy's body.
"There's something else. I can sense traces of temporal magic."
The king's expression turned serious. Virelle clenched her fists, while Angela, who remained near the entrance to the room, briefly glanced at Enrico before nodding.
That reaction was enough to make it clear that she also considered the discovery concerning.
If someone had placed a barrier of that magnitude in Enrico's mind and left traces of temporal magic, then the boy's knowledge of the future might not be as simple as they had imagined.
Alaric took a deep breath.
"So the world really is going to end..."
He looked back at Enrico's unconscious body and then at Hao.
"I want to see all his memories."
Hao sighed as he answered the king.
"I'm trying, Your Majesty, but this person's power seems to be far beyond mine. Perhaps if I concentrate hard enough, I can reveal some memories."
"Then concentrate as much as you can. We need to discover what happened in that future."
Hao nodded and turned his attention back to Enrico's mind.
As he moved through the tangle of memories, he felt a small shock upon finding a temporal barrier surrounding the young man's soul. Fragments of memories spread in every direction, most of them blurred or incomplete, as if someone had deliberately prevented them from being accessed.
The director tried to advance along one of the paths, but the barrier immediately reacted, pushing his consciousness backward.
"What kind of power is this...?"
Hao had never encountered protection of that nature. Even with his experience and magical mastery, he couldn't break through it directly. Even so, giving up wasn't an option.
He placed his hand on the barrier and began channeling a large amount of magic, concentrating all his efforts on a small area. Energy accumulated around his hand while the memory fragments trembled, as if they were about to fall apart.
The effort began to take its toll. A drop of blood trickled from Hao's nose, but he didn't retreat. He continued forcing his way through until, finally, one of the memories broke free from the tangle and appeared before him.
"I did it!"
An image began to form in the magical barrier above Enrico. At first, it was merely an indistinct silhouette. Gradually, however, the details became clear enough to reveal a scene that made everyone in the room hold their breath.
The image showed Enrico being expelled from Astrong Academy.
The boy in the memory seemed confused, but no one offered him a satisfactory explanation. There was no great battle, no obvious conspiracy, and no extraordinary event. He simply left the academy behind, walking away from a place that should have been fundamental to his growth.
Virelle stood motionless.
As a teacher at Astrong, she understood the importance of the institution and knew that expulsion wasn't a decision made without reason. Even so, watching that scene without understanding what had led to it left her uneasy.
'Judging by his words, perhaps he couldn't keep up with the other students...'
The image changed abruptly, advancing several years.
In the next memory, Enrico was kneeling on devastated ground. His body was still overweight, and a grown beard covered part of his face. His clothes were dirty, and his expression carried an exhaustion that seemed to have accumulated over many years. Above him, several figures hovered in the sky.
They were evil gods.
The entire continent had been destroyed. Cities had disappeared, mountains had been reduced to ruins, and there was no sign of life anywhere around them. The sky seemed oppressive, while the landscape below stretched out like an endless cemetery.
Upon witnessing the scene, Alaric stood up completely, unable to hide his shock. Angela brought one hand to her mouth, while Virelle remained silent.
However, what caught the two women's attention most wasn't the devastation around him, but Enrico's expression.
His eyes were empty.
They held none of the determination he currently displayed, nor the confidence of someone willing to face his own problems. That Enrico seemed to have lost even the hope that his situation could change.
"If I had trained, would I have had a better chance of surviving?"
The words came from the Enrico in the memory in a low, weary tone. He remained kneeling, watching the figures in the sky without showing any intention of confronting them.
Alaric clenched his fists.
"Is he saying he survived all of this without being able to fight?"
Hao, still focused on keeping the memory visible, answered without taking his eyes off the image.
"It seems so. But we still don't know how he managed to survive for so long."
The memory advanced again.
This time, Enrico was hiding inside a cave, curled up in a dark corner. Outside, three evil gods were amusing themselves with the slaves captured during the war. The prisoners were forced to satisfy the invaders' desires under the threat of being killed if they refused.
It was nothing more than a game in which the three would fight to the death.
Enrico watched everything from a distance, unable to do anything.
He knew that leaving the cave would mean death. He didn't possess enough power to face even one of those beings, much less all three at once. His only option was to remain hidden and hope they wouldn't find him.
Angela briefly looked away, visibly disturbed by what she was seeing. Virelle, meanwhile, kept her attention on the memory, but her expression had hardened.
The king remained silent. For someone responsible for protecting an entire kingdom, that scene was a terrible demonstration of what would happen if the evil gods managed to conquer the world.
In the memory, Enrico lowered his head and clenched his fists so tightly that his hands began to tremble.
"I hate this feeling! Why did I have to stop training? No... It doesn't matter anymore. After all, I'm only still alive because I'm weak."
Hao frowned upon hearing those words.
"Weak? Does he consider his own weakness the reason he's still alive?"
"Perhaps the invaders didn't care about someone who posed no threat."
Alaric replied, his voice heavy.
"If that's the case, the lack of power that prevented him from protecting others was also what allowed him to remain hidden."
None of them could find anything comforting in that conclusion.
Enrico's life in that future seemed to drag on without purpose. For years, he continued surviving, avoiding confrontations, and crossing devastated regions while the world he knew gradually disappeared.
Until he turned thirty.
Five years had passed since the invasion of the evil gods.
In the new memory, Enrico was walking through a desolate region. His body was extremely thin, and his loose clothes barely covered his weakened appearance. His bones protruded beneath his skin, while his slow steps revealed how much strength he had lost.
He traveled across the continents without finding practically any sign of life. The cities were abandoned, the roads had been overtaken by ruins, and even the places that had once housed great concentrations of magic seemed to have lost their vitality.
Then, something unexpected happened.
The space around Enrico distorted, and he disappeared from where he stood. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in an unfamiliar place.
"Where am I?"
His voice echoed through the silent surroundings. Enrico tried to stand up, but his weakened body barely responded to the effort. Even so, he raised his head and began examining the place, looking for any clue that might explain what had happened.
That was when he noticed someone else's presence.
Standing before him was a tall man with pale skin and long silver hair. His appearance was human, but there was something about his presence that made him difficult to ignore. He stood calmly, as if Enrico's arrival were exactly what he had expected.
The man observed his visitor for a few moments before speaking.
"Human, if you save the world I created, I can give you a chance to change all your regrets."
Enrico froze. For a moment, he seemed unable to understand the meaning of those words. Then, his eyes slowly widened, and he stared at the stranger with a mixture of hope and distrust.
"All my regrets?"
The man nodded without showing any surprise at his reaction.
"All the things you wish to change. But to do that, you'll need to save the world I created."
Tears began to stream down Enrico's face.
He lowered his head and clenched his fists. For five years, he had survived in a world that offered him nothing but suffering. He had lost everything he knew, spent his life running away, and carried the regret of having wasted the opportunities that could have made him someone capable of fighting.
Now, for the first time in a long while, someone was offering him a different possibility.
Enrico forced himself to stand. His legs trembled, and he needed a few moments to regain his balance, but he didn't look away from the man in front of him.
"What do I need to do?"
The stranger studied the boy's expression. He didn't seem bothered by his tears or by the deplorable state of his body. On the contrary, he showed a subtle interest upon noticing the intensity of the hatred still burning inside him.
"I see hatred on your face, boy. That's interesting."
The man took a few steps, approaching close enough for Enrico to examine him more clearly. His silver hair fell down his back, contrasting with his pale skin, while his expression remained serene.
"I won't demand that you tell me your story. I imagine you have enough reasons to wish for a change. Simply save the world I created, and you'll receive your reward."
Enrico remained silent.
He didn't know who the man was, why he had been brought to that place, or what kind of world he had created. Nor did he understand how anyone could offer him the opportunity to change his regrets.
But at that moment, he had nothing left to lose.
If this was his only chance to change the fate that had condemned him to such a humiliating life, he was willing to accept it.
Enrico wiped the tears from his face and raised his head. His eyes remained golden, filled with fury, but now there was also a determination that seemed to have lain dormant for years.
Before making his decision, however, he needed to know who was standing before him.
"What is your name?"
The man held his gaze for a few moments. Then, he answered without hesitation:
"Kronos."
The name remained in Enrico's mind as he looked at the door behind the man. On the other side, he would find the world he needed to save to obtain what he desired most.
He took a deep breath, gathered the strength he had left, and stepped forward.
"My name is Enrico, and I'll save your world to obtain what I desire."
The vision ended the moment he crossed the door without looking back.
The image disappeared from the magical barrier, leaving the castle room immersed in absolute silence.
For a few seconds, no one moved.
Alaric continued staring at the empty space where the memory had been projected, trying to process what he had just witnessed. Virelle kept her eyes fixed on Enrico, who remained unconscious on the bed, while Angela seemed unable to erase the desperate expression on the boy's face in that memory from her mind.
Hao was the first to lower his hand. Blood was still trickling discreetly from his nose, but he barely seemed to notice.
After all, they had just witnessed a future in which the world had been destroyed.