The laughter followed him long after the ceremony ended.
"F-Class stays F-Class."
"Three years and he'll probably drop out."
"Why even enroll?"
Same words.
Same tone.
Same people.
Kael didn't react.
He memorized their faces.
In the previous timeline, half of them would die within a year.
Two would become heroes.
One would become a traitor.
And one—
Would kill him.
He walked past the training field without stopping.
The academy layout was burned into his memory.
West Wing.
Second underground storage corridor.
Behind the mana circulation chamber.
Forty-seven days from now, a spatial distortion would form there.
A hidden dungeon.
Unregistered.
Undetected.
Inside it—
A fractured mana core.
Small.
But pure.
The kind that could permanently increase mana capacity.
In the previous timeline, it was discovered too late.
By an S-Class student.
Not this time.
Kael's pace remained steady.
Too steady.
A voice stopped him.
"Hey. F-Class."
He didn't need to turn around.
Darian Vale.
Rank A.
Future Rank S.
Future hero.
Future corpse.
Kael turned slowly.
Darian smiled casually, hands in his pockets.
"You should know your place. West Wing isn't for first-years yet."
Kael studied him.
Darian wasn't evil.
Just arrogant.
In three years, he would die buying time for others.
But right now—
He was just another obstacle.
"I'm just exploring," Kael said calmly.
Darian stepped closer.
"You don't have the mana reserves for advanced zones. Try not to get yourself killed before orientation."
Laughter from the group behind him.
Kael held his gaze.
"I won't die that easily."
Something in his tone made Darian's smile fade for a split second.
But then he shrugged.
"Suit yourself."
They left.
Kael turned back toward the West Wing.
Forty-seven days.
But that was in the original timeline.
He descended the maintenance stairs.
The air grew colder.
Dim mana lights flickered along the corridor.
Step by step, his heartbeat slowed.
In the previous life, he never came here early.
He never dared.
This time, he wouldn't wait.
He reached the sealed maintenance door.
No guards.
No barrier.
Because officially—
Nothing was here.
Kael pressed his palm against the wall.
Closed his eyes.
In the original timeline, the distortion began as a faint vibration.
Almost like a pulse.
He waited.
Silence.
Then—
A tremor.
His eyes snapped open.
Too early.
The air rippled.
A thin black crack formed in the wall.
His breath hitched.
This isn't supposed to happen yet.
The crack widened slightly.
Mana in the corridor destabilized.
A low whisper brushed against his mind.
"You're early."
Kael staggered back.
Cold flooded his spine.
That voice again.
Not memory.
Not imagination.
The crack pulsed.
Then stilled.
Gone.
The wall returned to normal.
Silence.
His heart pounded violently.
In the original timeline, the dungeon formed naturally.
No voice.
No awareness.
But now—
It reacted.
To him.
Kael clenched his fists.
The timeline is accelerating.
Or—
It's correcting.
If the dungeon appears earlier, everything shifts.
Which means the future he remembers is already unstable.
Footsteps echoed above.
Students.
Kael stepped back into the shadows.
If the distortion fully opens early, it could swallow someone unprepared.
And that would trigger investigation.
He exhaled slowly.
He needed more power.
Immediately.
He looked at his hand.
F-Class.
Low mana capacity.
But he knew something others didn't.
The ranking crystal only measured active resonance.
Not latent compatibility.
In the previous life, no one discovered his dual affinity.
Because no one gave him time.
This time—
He would awaken it himself.
A faint vibration trembled through the corridor again.
Stronger.
The wall cracked wider.
Dark mist seeped out.
A claw pushed through.
Not a full demon.
A scout-class.
Rank E at most.
But it wasn't supposed to exist yet.
Kael's eyes sharpened.
Good.
If the dungeon wants to open early—
Then I'll take it early.
The claw tore through the crack.
A distorted creature forced its head into the corridor, shrieking.
Kael stepped forward instead of back.
He had no weapon.
No mana reinforcement.
No rank.
But he had knowledge.
The creature lunged.
Kael moved half a second before it did.
Because he remembered the pattern.
He sidestepped.
Grabbed a broken pipe from the floor.
And drove it into the thin membrane beneath its jaw.
The demon shrieked violently.
Mana burst outward.
The corridor shook.
Kael felt something surge inside him—
Not power.
Recognition.
The whisper returned.
"You're interfering."
The crack widened.
This time—
Two red eyes opened within the darkness.
Watching him.
Not the academy.
Him.
Kael's breathing steadied.
So be it.
He tightened his grip on the pipe.
"If you remember me," he muttered quietly,
"Then I'll make sure you regret it."
The demon's body began pulling itself fully into the corridor.
And somewhere far above—
The sky flickered again.