Chapter 10: The Boy from Another World
The night passed without another attack.
Evan barely slept.
He sat beside the dying campfire, staring at the black feather he had found on the road.
Every time he touched it, the Fourfold mark on his hand reacted with a faint pulse of warmth.
He still couldn’t understand the vision.
Elias Veyr.
The First Fourfold Traveler.
Aurelion.
And the strange shadow with four glowing eyes.
The message from the World System continued to bother him.
The First Fourfold Traveler may not be dead.
Evan closed his hand around the feather.
“If you’re really alive…”
He looked toward the mountains.
“…then what happened to you?”
“You should sleep.”
Evan turned.
Kaela stood a few steps away.
“I could say the same to you.”
“I wasn’t the one staring at a feather all night.”
Evan smiled slightly.
“You noticed?”
“I notice a lot.”
Kaela sat beside him.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
Above them, the stars were unusually bright.
Kaela glanced at Evan’s hand.
“Does your mark still hurt?”
“A little.”
“Because of the vision?”
“I think so.”
Kaela was quiet for a moment.
“Do you regret coming here?”
Evan looked at her.
“What?”
“Coming to this world.”
Evan thought about the question.
There had been a time when he would have answered immediately.
He would have wanted nothing more than to return to Earth.
But things were different now.
“I don’t know.”
Kaela looked at him.
“That’s not what you used to say.”
“I know.”
Evan looked toward the horizon.
“I still miss Earth.”
Kaela nodded.
“But?”
“But I don’t think I want to leave everyone here.”
Kaela’s expression softened.
“Everyone?”
Evan suddenly realized what he had said.
He looked away.
“You know what I mean.”
Kaela smiled.
“Of course.”
Evan felt his face becoming warm.
He quickly stood.
“We should wake the others.”
Kaela laughed quietly.
“You’re avoiding the conversation.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
“I’m really not.”
“You are.”
Evan walked away while Kaela followed, still smiling.
By morning, the group continued toward Arclight.
The mountains gradually grew larger as they approached, their peaks disappearing into the clouds.
After several hours of walking, they reached the top of a hill.
Evan stopped.
Below them stood the Kingdom of Arclight.
Enormous walls surrounded a sprawling city filled with towers, bridges, and countless buildings.
At the center stood something completely different from the rest.
A massive circular structure.
A World Gate.
Even from this distance, Evan could feel the strange power coming from it.
His Fourfold mark became warm.
He instinctively covered it with his sleeve.
Kaela noticed.
“Again?”
Evan nodded.
“The Gate is reacting to me.”
Ronan looked toward the city.
“Then we need to be careful.”
“Why?”
“Because Arclight is the center of magical research in this region.”
Ronan pointed toward the distant towers.
“People there know more about the Fourfold than almost anyone.”
Evan frowned.
“That’s supposed to make me feel better?”
“No.”
Ronan continued down the road.
“It should make you nervous.”
Guards inspected everyone before allowing them inside.
Evan watched quietly.
Merchants stood beside adventurers.
Mages wearing enchanted robes spoke with travelers, while heavily armed warriors waited patiently in line.
It was the largest gathering of people Evan had seen since arriving in the World of Unknown.
Kaela stood beside him.
“You look nervous.”
“I am.”
“Why?”
Evan looked around.
“Because everyone here belongs to this world.”
Kaela understood immediately.
“And you don’t.”
Evan didn’t answer.
Their turn came.
A guard stepped forward.
“Names.”
Ronan answered first.
“Ronan.”
“Liora.”
“Kaela.”
Then the guard looked at Evan.
“And you?”
“Evan.”
The guard waited.
“Family name?”
Evan hesitated.
“Vale.”
The guard wrote it down.
“Place of origin?”
Evan froze.
Ronan noticed.
So did Kaela.
The guard frowned.
“Where are you from?”
Evan thought quickly.
“Far away.”
“That’s not a place.”
“I know.”
The guard stared at him.
Before the situation could become worse, Ronan stepped forward.
“He’s from a remote region. His village was destroyed.”
The guard looked at Ronan.
“Destroyed?”
“Yes.”
The guard sighed.
“Fine. Keep moving.”
Evan glanced at Ronan as they passed.
“Thanks.”
Ronan shrugged.
“Don’t mention it.”
Kaela looked at Evan.
“You owe him.”
“I know.”
Inside the city, Evan couldn’t stop looking around.
Magic was everywhere.
Small crystals floated above the streets, providing light.
Merchants sold enchanted objects, mages practiced spells in designated areas, and even some forms of transportation appeared to be powered by magic.
Evan suddenly felt very small.
On Earth, he had understood how the world worked.
Here, he understood almost nothing.
Kaela noticed his expression.
“You’ll get used to it.”
“Maybe.”
They continued through the crowded streets until Ronan stopped near a massive building.
A silver symbol was carved above the entrance.
“The Arclight Archive.”
Evan stared at it.
“This is where we’ll find information about the World Gates?”
Ronan nodded.
“Hopefully.”
Evan remembered the vision.
Elias.
Aurelion.
The World Gate.
He touched the black feather hidden inside his pocket.
Something told him the answers were closer than he thought.
Then a strange feeling passed through him.
Someone was watching.
Evan turned.
The crowd continued moving normally.
Nothing seemed unusual.
But he could feel it.
A pair of eyes.
He looked toward a narrow alley.
For a brief moment, he saw someone standing there.
A young man wearing dark clothing.
Pale face.
Cold expression.
He was watching Evan.
Their eyes met.
Then the stranger turned and disappeared.
Evan immediately followed.
“Evan?”
Kaela called after him.
He ran into the alley.
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Only wooden crates and old boxes remained.
Evan looked around.
“Where did he go?”
Kaela caught up with him.
“Who?”
“Someone was watching me.”
Ronan and Liora arrived behind her.
Ronan examined the alley.
“Did you recognize him?”
“No.”
Evan paused.
“But he looked like he knew me.”
Kaela frowned.
“Maybe he knows about the Fourfold.”
Evan shook his head.
“Maybe.”
He looked toward the end of the alley.
“Or maybe he knows something about Earth.”
Several streets away, the stranger stood on a rooftop.
He watched Evan disappear into the crowd.
A small crystal communicator rested in his hand.
“He’s here.”
A voice answered from the other side.
“Are you certain?”
The stranger looked toward the Archive.
“Yes.”
“And the mark?”
“I saw it.”
There was a pause.
“Then the records were correct.”
The stranger looked toward the darkening sky.
“Another Fourfold Traveler has appeared.”
Back in the street, Evan suddenly stopped.
His Fourfold mark burned.
He grabbed his wrist.
Kaela immediately noticed.
“Evan?”
“I’m fine.”
His natural red eyes flickered.
For a brief moment, violet-black passed through them.
Dark magic.
Then the color returned to its normal red.
Kaela stared.
“Your eyes.”
Evan looked at her.
“What?”
“They changed.”
Evan became quiet.
Ronan looked at him.
“So it happened again.”
“You saw it?”
Ronan nodded.
“During the fight in the forest.”
Evan looked down at his hand.
“I don’t understand why.”
Ronan answered calmly.
“Then Arclight is the right place to find out.”
Evan looked toward the Archive.
For the first time, the enormous building didn’t feel like just a library.
It felt like the beginning of an answer.
But somewhere inside those walls were records about people from Earth.
People who had appeared before him.
People who had disappeared.
And one name seemed to connect everything.
Elias Veyr.
Evan looked at Kaela.
“Let’s go.”
Kaela nodded.
Together, they walked toward the Archive.
Above them, the World Gate slowly began to glow.
Far beyond the mountains, Aurelion Veyr stood beneath the dark, star-filled sky.
His eyes opened.
He looked toward Arclight.
“The Second Fourfold has arrived.”
A shadow stood behind him.
“Should we interfere?”
Aurelion remained silent for several seconds.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because the boy must reach the Archive.”
The shadow hesitated.
“And if he discovers the truth?”
Aurelion’s expression hardened.
“Then we will see whether he can carry it.”
He turned away from the mountains.
“The real story begins now.”
Meanwhile, Evan and his companions disappeared into the crowded streets of Arclight.
None of them knew that someone inside the city had already recognized him.
None of them knew what waited inside the Archive.
And none of them knew that the arrival of the Second Fourfold Traveler had awakened something that had been silent for centuries.
The road ahead was no longer simply a journey to Arclight.
It was a journey toward the truth.