The door clicked shut behind Noel, sealing off the noise of the academy hallway.

For the first time since he'd returned, the quiet hit him — soft, heavy, almost too familiar.

His room looked exactly as he'd left it: bed half-made, stacks of books leaning dangerously on the desk, the faint scent of old parchment and mana ink lingering in the air. A place that wasn't glamorous or grand, but felt more like home than the Thorne mansion ever had.

A ripple of shadow slid across the floor.

Noir emerged from it a heartbeat later, her paws silent on the wooden boards. She stretched once, tail flicking lazily, before hopping onto the bed and sitting upright like she was waiting for him to speak.

'You've been holding that in all morning,' she said in his mind, voice low and perceptive.

Noel exhaled, dropping onto the edge of the bed beside her. "Yeah. I needed a minute."

Noir studied him, ears twitching, as he rubbed a hand over his eyes. The exhaustion finally seeped in now that he wasn't pretending to be fine in front of others — Marcus's jokes, Laziel's complaints, Garron's flexing… it had all been a distraction. A good one. But temporary.

He leaned back on his palms, eyes drifting toward the ceiling.

'So… what now?' Noir asked softly.

Noel turned his head toward her. She was looking at him with those violet eyes — calm, steady, unwavering. Like she always did.

He let a breath out through his nose, a humorless half-smile forming.

"Now," he said quietly, "we plan. Because things aren't slowing down… and we both know it."

Noir nodded once, curling her tail around her paws.

'Then let's talk about what comes next, Dad.'

Noel sat up a little straighter, his expression sharpening.

"Yeah," he murmured. "Let's start."

Noel leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, fingers loosely interlaced.

For a long moment, he didn't speak — just listened to the faint hum of mana lamps outside the window and the soft sound of Noir's tail tapping the sheets.

When he finally exhaled, the breath came out slow and steady.

"There are two major events left," he said quietly. "Two turning points."

Noir's ears perked. 'The ones from the novel?'

"Yeah." Noel nodded, eyes narrowing slightly in thought. "But everything's been shifting since the moment I got here. People who should've died lived. People who were villains aren't anymore. Events that were supposed to happen… didn't."

He rubbed his thumb over his palm — a nervous habit he never quite lost.

"The butterfly effect screwed the timeline. Completely."

Noir watched him closely, tail stilling. 'But the big ones remain?'

"More or less." Noel raised two fingers.

"First: the Second Pillar. The novel said he hides somewhere in the Northern Isles. That whole arc where the protagonist sails there, investigates cult activity, uncovers the next stage of Elarin's plan." He scoffed. "But that was Marcus's story originally. And now… who knows how much has changed."

He lowered the first finger, leaving the last one raised.

"And second… the First Pillar. And Elarin."

His voice softened — not out of fear, but out of memory.

"In the novel, the final catastrophe wasn't the collapse of kingdoms." His jaw tightened. "It was the collapse of the entire world."

Noir's fur bristled faintly.

"Monsters poured everywhere — endless, unstoppable. The Pillars led them personally. All of them." He swallowed. "But right now, only two remain. So the scale will be different… but still apocalyptic."

A shadow crossed his eyes.

"In the novel… everyone died." His voice was barely above a breath. "Marcus. Elyra. Selene. Charlotte. Elena. Garron. Laziel. My parents. My classmates. Anyone who refused to join Elarin's side was wiped out."

Noir stepped closer, nudging his arm. Her voice in his mind was smaller than usual. 'All of them…?'

"Yeah." He closed his eyes briefly. "All of them."

Noel let out a slow breath, a faintly bitter smile tugging at his lips.

"See… back then I had pretty peculiar tastes," he murmured, rubbing the side of his forehead. "I used to enjoy reading stories where the villains won. Tragic endings, worlds falling apart… I guess it felt interesting when it was all just fiction."

His expression dimmed, eyes chilling at the edges.

"But living it? Watching it happen to people I care about? I don't really feel like repeating that. Not even once."

Noir lifted her head, pressing it gently against his chest, her warmth steady and grounding.

'Yeah,' she whispered into his mind. 'You've been doing everything you can to stop it, Dad.'

Something softened inside him at that.

Noel let out a tired, quiet laugh and rested his hand atop her head.

"And I'll keep doing it," he said softly. "All the way until the end."

Noir's tail curled tighter around her paws as she looked up at him.

'So… what about us?' she asked softly. 'What do we do now?'

Noel leaned back slightly, staring at the opposite wall as if the answers might be carved into the stone. "We prepare," he said. "Not panic. Just… take the steps we can."

Noir tilted her head. 'And the rest?'

He hesitated.

His room was quiet — so quiet that he could hear the faint creak of the lantern chain above, the whisper of wind brushing against the window. The kind of silence that made thoughts louder.

"No matter what happens next," he said slowly, "I'm not letting it end the same way."

Noir blinked once. Then twice. 'You sound determined.'

"I am." He rubbed the back of his neck. "And exhausted. But mostly determined."

Noir hopped closer, settling beside his hip. Her presence alone brought a strange calm — as if the worst parts of the future felt slightly less suffocating with her next to him.

'Dad,' she murmured, her thoughts warm in his mind, 'you won't face it alone this time.'

He looked down at her, meeting her violet eyes.

"Yeah," he whispered. "I know."

A brief silence passed — softer this time, almost comforting.

Noir's ears twitched. 'So… what's the actual plan?'

"No idea," Noel admitted bluntly.

She stared at him.

He stared back.

Then Noir sighed dramatically and flopped onto her side. 'Great. Wonderful. My father, the genius, has no plan.'

Noel snorted. "Hey. I have an outline."

'An outline is not a plan.'

"It's a start," he countered.

Noir huffed but didn't argue further. Instead, she nudged his arm gently.

'Then we'll make the plan together. When the time comes.'

He smiled faintly.

"Yeah," he said. "We will."

Noir's ear twitched, picking up the shift in his tone before he even finished exhaling.

"So…" Noel rubbed his temples lightly, voice dropping into that tired, practical register he only used when his brain was bracing for chaos. "I guess the next step is just… waiting for the system to throw the next mission at me."

'You sound thrilled,' Noir said dryly.

"Oh, absolutely," Noel muttered. "Can't wait."

He leaned forward again, fingers drumming lightly against his knee.

"Whenever it comes," he continued, "I'll have to be ready. And… probably talk to Daemar." He grimaced. "Explain that I'll need to take a leave from the academy."

Noir blinked at him slowly. 'To go to the Northern Isles.'

"Yeah." Noel shrugged, though it was stiff. "There's no version of this where I don't go. And if the mission points me there, then…" His lips pressed into a thin line. "I'll handle it."

Noir stretched out, tail flicking lazily. 'Do you think he'll just let you leave?'

Noel let out a slow breath, leaning back slightly. "Yeah," he murmured. "If he's anything like Nicolas…" A faint, tired smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "…he'll let me go."

Noir's tail flicked once, relieved. 'Then it's settled.'

Noel nodded. "Yeah. He'll say some dramatic speech first, but in the end? He'll say yes."

The room had grown quiet again — the kind of quiet that didn't suffocate but settled softly across the walls, like a blanket drawn over the world.

Noel stood and crossed to the window, pushing the curtain aside just enough to look out. The academy grounds stretched beneath the fading light: students chatting below, mana lanterns flickering to life one by one, the breeze carrying faint hints of autumn.

A calm evening. Ordinary. Something he didn't get often.

Noir hopped down from the bed and padded over, brushing her side against his leg.

'Thinking again,' she said.

"Always," Noel replied.

He rested his forehead lightly against the cool glass. From this height, the world looked deceptively peaceful — almost untouched by monsters, pillars, and destinies he never asked for.

"Everything feels too quiet," he murmured.

'That's why you don't like it,' Noir teased gently.

He huffed a small breath. "Maybe."

Noir sat beside him, her shadow stretching long across the floor. 'But quiet also means you're not fighting for once. You should enjoy it while it lasts.'

"…Yeah," Noel admitted, voice low. "I know."

For a moment, neither spoke. The soft rustle of leaves outside filled the silence.

Then Noir nudged his ankle. 'We'll handle it. Whatever comes next.'

He looked down at her, a tired but genuine smile forming. "Yeah. We will."

Noir lifted her head proudly. 'Because you're my dad.'

Noel rolled his eyes with a soft laugh. "I am."

He shook his head and let the curtain fall back into place. The room dimmed again, lit only by the faint glow of a lone mana lamp.

"Tomorrow," he said quietly, almost to himself. "Classes. Normal life. Whatever that means."

Noir jumped back onto the bed, circling once before settling down. 'Then you'd better sleep. You look like you haven't rested since… forever.'

"Rude," Noel muttered.

'True,' Noir countered.

He snorted, finally allowing the exhaustion to catch up as he crossed the room. As he sat at the edge of the bed, Noir curled beside him, her warmth grounding him in a way nothing else did.

Noel exhaled — slow, steady.

"Alright," he whispered. "One quiet night. I'll take it."

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