Chapter 195: Out Of Place

…Does it have to be a god?

The thought settled in his mind as the barrier groaned under another heavy collision, cracks spreading faster now, slower to repair. Adam didn’t move, his gaze steady as he followed the idea instead of rejecting it.

In any other setting, that question would have been heresy.

But Adam didn’t feel any of that.

Because deep down, he had never truly believed in them.

Everything he had gained, every step forward, every ability he held, it hadn’t come from prayer or blessing. It came from his own actions. From entering that rift. From surviving. From choosing to keep moving.

Not divine intervention.

Just him.

Adam let out a slow breath, his shoulders easing slightly as the tension shifted into something clearer and more grounded. The confusion faded, replaced by something far more familiar, something he had relied on from the very beginning.

“…No offense.”

His voice was calm, almost casual despite the chaos outside.

“…but I’ve got it from here.”

He wasn’t speaking to anyone specific.

Not really.

It felt like closing a door more than anything else.

Adam opened his eyes fully, and in the next instant, his aura surged outward as he released the bone barrier completely. The structure shattered in all directions, exploding into countless sharp fragments.

The shards tore through the surrounding chalk men, ripping through their bodies and blasting a large section of the street clear. For a brief moment, space opened around him, broken figures scattered across the ground.

But it didn’t last.

The pieces moved and more white bodies stepped in immediately, replacing what had fallen as if nothing had happened. The swarm rushed him again without hesitation, faster now, more aggressive than before.

Adam didn’t move.

He didn’t raise his scythe.

He didn’t react.

Time seemed to slow as the figures closed in, their movements stretching out as his focus turned inward instead of outward. Thoughts didn’t scatter this time, instead they aligned as past memories surfaced.

Fragments of everything he had gone through.

Struggle.

Pain.

Loss.

But also,

Growth.

Control.

Choice.

Through all of it, one thing remained constant.

Him.

Adam stood at the center of it all, not as someone chosen, not as someone blessed, but as someone who acted. Someone who moved forward regardless of what stood in front of him.

That’s enough.

He didn’t pray.

Didn’t chant.

Didn’t reach outward.

He simply accepted it.

Believed it.

The chalk men were already within reach now, arms extending, ready to tear into him as they had before. Their numbers filled his vision completely, leaving no space to escape.

Then a Light erupted.

It burst from his body in an instant, brilliant and overwhelming, flooding the street with a divine radiance. The glow expanded rapidly, pushing outward in every direction without resistance.

And for the first time the chalk men froze.

****

The moment the light erupted outside, something shifted deep within Remedy’s soul, subtle at first, but impossible to ignore. She lifted her head immediately, her attention snapping toward the reinforced windows as a faint glow seeped through.

It wasn’t normal and strangely enough it called to her.

Remedy stood slowly, her movements no longer fully bound by the rigid flow of memory, and stepped closer to the window. The light outside grew clearer with each step, bright and steady, carrying a presence she recognized instantly.

“…Holy Light?”

Her eyes narrowed slightly as realization struck.

That wasn’t just any light.

It was Adam.

A brief flicker of confusion crossed her face as she watched it spread across the street beyond the shelter. She knew he could adapt affinities, but this choice still didn’t align with what she expected.

Why is he using that?

It didn’t match the situation.

At least, not at first glance.

But the more she focused on it, the more she felt something deeper within it, something that resonated with the structure of her soul itself. It wasn’t just power, it was compatibility.

And that made her pause.

The memory around her shifted slightly, almost imperceptibly, as her control over it strengthened. Before, she had been forced to follow its flow exactly, like an actor locked into a script she couldn’t change.

Now, there was resistance.

Although it was small, it was still better than nothing.

Remedy stepped closer to the window, no longer bound to her original position, her current will overriding the fixed sequence of events. It wasn’t perfect control, but it was enough to act,

But the moment she reached the window, a hand grabbed her shoulder.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

The voice was very familiar.

Remedy froze.

Her pupils shrank instantly as she turned her head slightly, her gaze landing on the martial artist who had previously denied her parents entry. His grip was solid, real, and completely out of place.

…That’s not right.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

In the original memory, his actions were fixed. Locked into a sequence that didn’t change no matter what she did. Even when she started moving differently, the people within the memory continued acting as they originally had.

Like echoes they were unchanging.

But this?

This wasn’t that.

He had reacted to her.

Adjusted to her movement.

Just like the chalk men outside.

Remedy’s mind sharpened instantly as the comparison formed, her thoughts accelerating despite the tension building around her. That kind of reaction only happened when something foreign interfered with the system.

But she wasn’t foreign.

This was her soul.

Her memory.

There was no reason for it to reject her.

“…Why?”

The word slipped out quietly, more to herself than anyone else, her gaze tightening as unease crept in. She searched her memories quickly, flipping through what she knew of this moment.

There was nothing.

Nothing like this had ever happened before.

And that was the problem.

Because if this wasn’t part of the memory, then something else had started interfering.

And she had no idea what it was.

****

Author’s Note: Thank you for reading, your support is the source of my motivation.

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