The wind moved differently here.
Arthur Frederick stood still, letting it brush against his skin, carrying scents of polished wood, stone walls, and distant incense. This wasn't a battlefield. This wasn't where flames consumed him.
This was… a room.
His room.
His eyes moved slowly, taking in the surroundings—clean walls, a neatly arranged bed, a wooden desk, and a window overlooking a vast courtyard. Beyond it stood towering structures, elegant and imposing.
An academy.
Right…
The memories settled in.
Not from his past lives.
From this one.
Arthur Frederick. A commoner.
A nobody.
And yet…
He was here.
Fragments returned, sharper this time.
A road.
A carriage under attack.
A girl—terrified, surrounded.
And him… stepping in.
Violence. Fast. Efficient.
Unthinking.
I saved her.
The daughter of someone important.
Very important.
The Headmaster.
That single act had changed everything.
An invitation was given.
A place in the most prestigious academy in Alora—an institution meant only for nobles.
And somehow…
He got in.
Arthur exhaled slowly.
So that's how I ended up here…
But that wasn't the only thing that happened.
His gaze shifted slightly.
The room felt… disturbed.
A chair was knocked over.
The air still carried tension.
Then it hit him.Another memory Recent clear.
Someone standing over him Mocking him
A noble.
Arrogant.
Looking down on him.
"Trash doesn't belong here."
Arthur's expression darkened slightly.
Yeah… I remember now.
The fight.
It wasn't long.
It never was.
The noble had expected an easy victory—someone to humiliate, someone beneath him.
Arthur had let him talk.
Let him believe it.
Then ended it.
Clean.
Decisive.
Brutal enough to make a point.
And that's when it happened.
The moment everything came back.
Arthur pressed his hand lightly against his head.
That punch…
No.
That moment.
Something snapped into place.
Like a lock breaking open.
Memories flooded in.
Fire.
Screams.
Betrayal.
Death.
Twice.
His breathing steadied.
But his eyes…
His eyes were no longer the same.
"I died…"
The words came out low.
Calm.
Certain.
"Twice."
A faint flicker appeared at the edge of his vision.
Arthur didn't react immediately.
He simply watched.
A translucent interface formed—unstable, glitching, symbols forming and breaking apart as if reality itself couldn't process him.
Then—
It disappeared.
"…Still the same."
The System can't read me.
Not fully.
Not correctly.
He clenched his fist.
Shadows flickered faintly around his fingers—subtle, but real.
Controlled.
Not given.
Not restricted.
Just… his.
A slow breath escaped him.
An academy for nobles…
His lips curved slightly—not quite a smile.
More like quiet amusement.
"They really let me in here…"
Outside, distant voices echoed across the courtyard.
Students.
Nobles.
People who had never known real loss.
People who thought power was something inherited… not earned.
Arthur walked toward the window, his reflection staring back at him.
Same face.
Same body.
But not the same person.
Not anymore.
"I won't make the same mistakes again."
This time, there was no hesitation.
No doubt.
Only resolve.
And somewhere beyond the world he could see…
Something watched.
Silent.
Patient.
Interested.
Arthur Frederick turned away from the window.
From the past.
From weakness.
This life wouldn't end the same way.
In a place where only nobles ruled…
A Misfit had just taken his first step.