The forest thickened as they moved deeper in.
Branches twisted overhead, blocking most of the light. The ground was uneven, covered in roots and soft moss that muffled their steps. Birds finally began to chirp in the distance — a sign they were far enough from danger.
For now.
Rafe walked ahead, every sense sharpened from adrenaline and instinct. Mara helped Lyn walk behind him, steady and protective.
"We need shelter," Rafe said. "Somewhere hidden, but dry."
Mara nodded. "Lyn can't keep moving like this."
Lyn tried to speak, but the words came out weak and breathless.
"I'm… fine…"
"You're not," Mara said firmly.
Rafe scanned the terrain. "Look for natural shapes — hollow trees, overhangs, old structures."
Mara pointed ahead.
"There."
Just beyond a cluster of fallen logs, an old stone structure peeked through a curtain of vines — half-collapsed but still standing. The forest had reclaimed most of it, but the archway remained intact.
Rafe approached carefully.
It looked ancient.Older than the orphanage.Older than the town.
A forgotten ruin.
He stepped inside first.
The interior was damp but surprisingly spacious. Crumbling stone walls curved around a circular room. In the back, a raised platform lay cracked but stable.
"This will work," Rafe said.
Mara smiled faintly.
"It's better than I expected."
Lyn sank to her knees the moment she entered, breathing heavily.
Rafe kneeled beside her, checking her pulse.
"You need rest, food, and water."
"I'll find water," Mara said immediately.
"No," Rafe said. "You stay. If the scout's out there, you can't risk being alone."
She opened her mouth to argue — then closed it.
"…Fine. But I'm staying close."
Rafe dug into the pockets of his ragged pants. He produced a tiny fruit he found earlier — barely enough to count as food, but something.
"Here," he said.
Lyn accepted it with trembling hands.
"Thank you…"
Her voice sounded small, fragile.
Mara brushed Lyn's hair aside.
"You're safe, Lyn. We're here."
The girl looked between them, eyes glassy.
"Why… why are you being so nice?"
Mara blinked. "Why wouldn't we?"
"People don't… help me," Lyn whispered. "They never did. They always said I was strange… a burden…"
Rafe and Mara exchanged a look — one filled with quiet anger on her behalf.
Mara said gently, "You're not a burden."
Rafe added, "And you're not strange. You're awakened."
Lyn's eyes widened.
"That's worse…" she murmured. "If they find out what kind of mana I have…"
Rafe leaned closer.
"What kind is it?"
Lyn hesitated.
Then she lifted her hand.
A faint glow shimmered around her fingers — soft, golden light, scattered like sparks from the sun itself.
Mara gasped.
"That's—"
Rafe finished for her:
"Pure Light Mana."
The rarest in the region.The most sought-after.The most dangerous to possess.
Lyn's hands trembled.
"I don't know how to control it," she said. "It just… reacts."
Rafe's mind raced.
Light Mana could:Enhance perception.Alter temporal awareness.Slow enemies.Speed up allies.Heal.Blind.Purify.
And at high enough levels—
It could bend time.
But Lyn was too young to know any of that.
"You don't need to control it now," Rafe said softly. "Just survive."
Lyn lowered her hand.
"Do you think they'll come back for me?"
Rafe didn't lie.
"Yes. Someone powerful sent that scout. Someone who wants you badly."
Mara shifted closer, almost instinctively pressing against Lyn's side.
"Then we won't let them take you."
Lyn's eyes softened, shining with tears.
"I'm… really not alone?"
Rafe answered before Mara could.
"No. Not anymore."
A long silence followed — warm, fragile, real.
But peace never lasted for him.
A twig snapped outside.
Rafe shot to his feet instantly.
Mara stiffened, hand reaching for a fallen branch like a weapon.
Lyn curled into herself, glowing faintly in fear.
Rafe stepped to the entrance, instinct sharp as a blade.
"Stay behind me."
Mara moved beside him.
"I'm not hiding."
Rafe narrowed his eyes, scanning the trees.
Another sound.
Leaves rustling.
A shadow moved between the trunks.
That heavy, controlled presence wasn't the scout.
This one was… lighter.Calmer.Yet powerful.
Someone — or something — was there.
A figure stepped into view.
A tall silhouette with long hair tied back, dressed in worn leathers, carrying a staff carved with runic markings.
Not a scout.Not a caretaker.Not a beast.
Mara whispered:
"Rafe… who is that?"
Rafe didn't answer.
Because he recognized this figure.Not from this timeline.Not from the orphanage arc.
But from far later in the novel.
A wandering mage.
A recluse.A survivor of a forgotten bloodline.A woman feared and respected in equal measure.
Her name, whispered in the original story, was—
Selene Arkwright.
A future major heroine.
And she wasn't supposed to appear for at least another arc.
She looked at the ruin, at the children inside.
Her voice was calm, cold, adult.
"I sensed Light Mana. A child awakened it."
Rafe stepped forward, blocking the entrance.
"What do you want?"
Selene tilted her head slightly, studying him.
"I want," she said slowly, "to know why three children are hiding in a ruin… and why one of them holds the rarest mana in the region."
Mara gripped Rafe's arm.
Lyn trembled behind them.
Rafe's heart pounded.
The timeline wasn't just shifting.
It was breaking.
But Rafe met Selene's gaze without fear.
Because running was over.
And the world was coming to them faster than ever.