The zone collapsed behind him in silence.
No explosion.
No fanfare.
Just a subtle sigh from the threads — like the world had erased a word it never meant to say.
Elian didn't look back.
He didn't need to.
What mattered was ahead.
But the moment he crossed back into the Fracture Fringe, his Threadsense stirred.
Not a threat.
A presence.
Following.
Not close.
Not fast.
But there.
[Unknown Entity Detected – Classification Unavailable]
[Tracking Pattern: Passive]
[System Alert: "Name Reflection Spike" Detected]
[Warning: Target may possess knowledge of pre-Seed identity.]
Elian froze.
That was impossible.
His identity had been severed at emergence. Even he didn't know the full truth of who he was before the system marked him.
He turned.
Nothing.
The threads were still.
But in the distance — far, but not far enough — a figure stood.
Cloaked. Wrapped in light that bled inward instead of out.
It didn't move.
Didn't breathe.
But it spoke.
Not aloud.
Not in words.
In his name.
"Elian, son of silence. You forgot the wrong thing."
His stomach twisted.
"Who are you?"
No answer.
Just three system prompts.
[Soul Echo Flare Triggered – Origin Link Detected]
[Threadbreaker Instability: Mild]
[System Note: Entity does not appear on any recorded surveillance layer.]
He stepped forward.
The figure vanished.
No flicker. No fade.
Just gone.
Like it had never existed.
Or like it hadn't needed to exist.
He felt it in his bones.
Whatever it was… it wasn't system-born.
It was older.
And it remembered a version of him the world had buried.
[Lucid Trait Sync: 42% → 43%]
[Devil's Core Progression: 7% → 8.2%]
[Soul Echo Instability: Active]
[New Trait Flare Detected: "Unknown Reflection – Dormant"]
Elian didn't speak again that night.
Not to the system.
Not to himself.
Because for the first time…
He realized he wasn't the only devil learning to remember