A day had passed since the incident near the sweet shop.
Although everyone had returned home safely, the memory of that night remained fresh in their minds.
"I still can't believe that happened," Lily said, resting her chin on her hand.
"Seriously," Jas agreed. "If that guy hadn't shown up, who knows what would've happened to us?"
The group fell silent for a moment, shuddering at the thought.
Ria quietly listened to their conversation.
For some reason, she couldn't stop thinking about the mysterious man who had saved them.
His voice.
His eyes.
His calm presence.
Everything about him felt strangely familiar...
Almost as if she had met him somewhere before.
But where?
Before she could dwell on the thought any longer, the classroom door slid open.
Their teacher walked in, carrying a folder in one hand.
"Everyone, please settle down," she announced.
The students quickly returned to their seats.
"I have some good news for all of you."
Excited murmurs immediately spread throughout the classroom.
The teacher smiled before looking toward the door.
"Please come in, Mr. Valtorin."
The classroom door opened once more.
A young man stepped inside, and for a brief moment, silence filled the room.
He carried himself with quiet confidence. His neatly combed dark hair, calm expression, and striking blue-gray eyes immediately caught everyone's attention.
Whispers echoed from every corner of the classroom.
"He's handsome..."
"I've never seen him before."
"I wonder where he transferred from."
The young man gave a polite bow.
"Good morning, everyone. My name is Akira Asterion Valtorin. I recently transferred here, and I hope we can all get along."
The classroom instantly buzzed with excitement.
"What a cool name."
"Akira..."
"Even his surname sounds rich."
Ria quietly stared at him.
Akira...
For some reason, hearing his name left an unfamiliar emptiness in her chest.
It was as though she had expected to hear a different name...
One that lingered just beyond her memory.
But before she could make sense of the feeling, it vanished.
Why am I thinking like this? We just met...
"Mr. Valtorin," the teacher said with a smile. "There's an empty seat beside Ria. You may sit there."
Every pair of eyes turned toward her.
Ria immediately straightened in her seat as Akira made his way to the vacant chair beside her.
"Excuse me," he said politely before sitting down.
"It's... nice to meet you," Ria replied with a small smile.
"You too."
That was all.
Just a simple greeting between two strangers.
Yet the moment their eyes met, an indescribable feeling washed over both of them.
It lasted only a heartbeat.
Akira frowned slightly.
For a split second, an unfamiliar voice echoed inside his mind.
"Please... save me..."
He instinctively glanced around the classroom.
...What was that?
Before he could think any further, the strange voice disappeared as quickly as it had come.
At the same time, Ria felt her heart skip a beat.
A faint image flashed across her mind.
Cold chains.
Endless darkness.
A pair of gentle eyes looking at her with unwavering determination.
Then...
Everything vanished.
"...Are you alright?" Akira asked, noticing she had suddenly gone quiet.
Ria blinked.
"H-Huh? Oh... I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
She forced a small smile.
"Yeah... I just didn't get enough sleep."
"I see."
Although Akira nodded, he couldn't shake the strange feeling inside him.
Somehow...
Meeting Ria felt oddly familiar.
As if this wasn't the first time their paths had crossed.
Neither of them understood why.
To them, they were simply two strangers who had met for the first time.
Outside the classroom, beneath the shade of an ancient tree, a mysterious figure silently watched through the window.
A faint smile slowly appeared on the figure's lips.
"So..."
"They've finally found each other again."
The figure turned away and disappeared into the distance before anyone could notice.
Inside the classroom, Ria absentmindedly glanced toward the window.
For a brief moment, she thought she saw someone standing beneath the old tree.
But when she blinked...
No one was there.
"...Must've been my imagination," she murmured before returning her attention to the lesson.
Little did she know...
That chance encounter was only the beginning.
A promise made long ago...
A fate that had been waiting across countless lifetimes...
And a story that had begun long before either of them was born.
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