Jaden leaned back in his chair and slowly rubbed his face, thinking over what he had just read.

"Earth... this world used to be Earth," he mumbled.

At the same time, many thoughts spiralled endlessly in his mind, 'It could be a different Earth... There was nothing in that book that confirmed it as my Earth... if transmigration is possible, why can't there be another Earth... But even if it is my Earth, does it change anything? I didn't have anyone of myself, no friends, no family... yet, I can't accept it being my Earth, why?'

Deep in his heart, he knew the reason, but he didn't want to accept it.

Humans hate losing what is theirs, and the same was true for him.

For him, it was 'My Earth' giving him a sense of belonging... he simply couldn't accept seeing something of his get so broken by the vile nightmares and star beasts...

A heavy, defeated sigh escaped his dry lips. He stood up and began picking up the book and the diary.

His eyes lingered on the diary for a few moments, and he closed them and picked up the diary.

He opened his eyes and walked towards the counter on the right.

His steps were slow and heavy, echoing through the vast room like the final notes of a melancholic piano.

He reached the counter, placed both the book and the diary on it and spoke, "Thanks."

The old man raised his head and looked at him.

Seeing the sombre expression brushing across Jaden's face, He asked, "What's wrong, lad?"

A few moments passed in silence before Jaden asked, "Have you ever felt sorrow over losing something you never truly valued?"

The old man folded his hands together and leaned back in his chair, pondering the question in silence.

Moments later, he turned his head toward Jaden and answered softly, "I don't quite remember a specific thing."

A faint smile creased his weathered face. "But there was something I did feel sorrow over after failing to value it — my youth. I was so busy mourning what I had lost that I forgot to cherish what I still was."

He leaned forward, meeting Jaden's eyes, his voice low but steady, "Mourn something once, mourn it twice... but never mourn it forever and don't forget what you have for what is lost."

"Now get your ass back to the class," he rasped, picked up the book and diary and placed them back in their spots.

Jaden smiled softly and gave him a faint nod before turning around and stepping out of the library.

All of his worries were still there, but now he was able to see a bigger picture... so what if his world was broken? He could always rebuild it, and he would.

His eyes burned with determination, and he turned away from the classroom and walked towards the training centre.

His eyes fell on the students of the other sections who were sparring with each other. At the same time, a few students turned to look at him with puzzled expressions.

He stepped further inside, and a hoarse voice reached his ear, "What are you doing here, student Jaden?"

He turned towards the masked sword coach and spoke, "I wanted to meet Miss Maria."

The sword coach tilted his head, pointed at the students standing around him and asked coldly, "Can you not see that a lecture is going on?"

A frown appeared on Jaden's face. He bowed to the sword coach and spoke, "I am deeply sorry for my presumptuous act, but I need to meet Miss Maria."

The students began their muttering while the sword coach looked at him with displeased eyes.

However, before it could spiral into deeper chaos, a soft voice echoed within the wide room.

"I hope it's as important as you claim it to be, student Jaden," Maria said with a frown etched on her face.

"Follow me," she commanded, and Jaden followed.

A few minutes later, she sat in a leather chair with a teacup in her hand while Jaden stood before her table with his hands folded behind his back.

"So, what is so important for you that you chose to disturb an ongoing lecture?" She asked and took a sip from the teacup.

He heaved a sigh to calm his furiously beating heart and answered, "I believe that there is no point for me to stay in the academy."

She placed the teacup back on its plate and mumbled, "I nearly spat my tea." She wiped her lips with a handkerchief and asked, "Why do you believe that?"

"I was looking at everything the wrong way. What I wanted was to find a way to regain my memories, but I have found nothing related to it..." he answered in a steady voice.

She furrowed her brows and spoke in a baffled tone, "So what are you gonna do? Run around trying to find a way? How is that going to help you? You can stay in the academy, get stronger, and then go out—"

"I can get stronger if I go out," he interjected.

"What?" She exclaimed but he didn't explain further.

A few seconds passed in the awkward silence until Maria leaned back in her chair and let out a frustrated sigh.

She closed her eyes, rubbed her forehead and asked, "What about your friends? What are you going to tell them?"

He lowered his head and replied in a low voice, "I don't really know if I can call them friends... I still don't have my memories, after all."

"Hoh?" A frustrated and infuriated laugh escaped her lips as she yelled, "For fuck's sake, Jaden, they are the ones who fought with you. They had your back for one year, and yet you say you cannot trust them?"

He further lowered his head.

"You know what's wrong? It's you. You are being paranoid about every single thing so much so that you can no longer see the bigger and clearer picture."

______

Please! Add a Review so I can know your thoughts about the story.

Goals

• 100 power stones = extra 1 chapter.

• 100 golden tickets = extra 1 chapter.

• 100 collections = extra 1 chapter.

• Golden Castle = extra 5 chapters.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.