Logan’s pupils contracted slightly.

The atmosphere around him instantly turned colder.

Escape its gaze?

Astra’s words echoed through his mind like a warning bell.

For the first time since entering this world, a faint sense of danger crawled slowly across Logan’s spine.

Not the kind born from enemies.

Not the kind born from monsters.

But from being watched.

Constantly.

Silently.

Logan’s fingers tapped lightly against the table.

Once.

Twice.

Then stopped.

Luna noticed the subtle shift in his expression almost immediately.

"What is it?"

"Nothing." Logan answered too quickly.

Luna narrowed her eyes slightly, but didn’t press further.

The room returned to silence.

A quiet, suffocating silence.

Logan lowered his gaze slightly, thoughts moving rapidly beneath his calm exterior.

If Astra’s mission specifically stated that The Shadow was watching him even now, then that meant one thing.

Raven’s surveillance abilities were even more terrifying than he had initially expected.

No.

Perhaps not Raven.

The god behind him.

Logan’s eyes darkened faintly.

The problem wasn’t merely being watched.

It was that he had absolutely no idea how.

Shadow? Darkness? Reflection? Presence?

There were too many possibilities.

And the worst part was that Raven himself might not even need to actively observe him.

The god could simply be doing it directly.

’Escape its gaze...’

The wording bothered him.

Not block.

Not fight.

Escape.

Meaning Astra already understood that confronting it directly right now was impossible.

Logan slowly leaned back in his chair, exhaling quietly.

His eyes drifted unconsciously toward the darker corners of the room.

The shadows beneath the table.

Behind the curtains.

Under the bed.

For a brief moment, they almost felt alive.

Luna suddenly rubbed her arms lightly.

"Why does it suddenly feel colder?"

Logan’s gaze flickered.

A cold breeze brushed against the curtains despite the windows remaining shut.

His expression stayed calm, but inwardly, his thoughts sharpened instantly.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

Logan’s thoughts rapidly shifted away from the strange atmosphere in the room and back toward the system notification.

Kill Ethan.

The mission itself felt absurd.

No.

Monstrous.

Ethan wasn’t just some random character.

He was the protagonist of the original story.

The center of countless plotlines.

The man who was supposed to rise endlessly no matter what stood in his way.

Yet Astra had still issued the mission.

Meaning one thing was obvious.

Ethan could die.

Logan slowly lowered his gaze, deep in thought.

Back when he wrote the novel, Ethan’s greatest strength early on wasn’t power.

It was momentum.

Every event around him constantly pushed him upward.

Lucky encounters.

Hidden inheritances.

Unexpected allies.

Even enemies somehow ended up helping him grow stronger.

If Logan wanted to kill him, then he needed to do it before that momentum fully formed.

Before Ethan truly became the protagonist the world revolved around.

Luna watched Logan quietly from the bed.

Although he looked calm externally, his silence somehow felt heavier now.

Sharper.

More dangerous.

"Logan? Are you alright?" she asked quietly.

Logan turned toward her, the killing intent in his eyes receding almost instantly.

"Yeah. I was just thinking of something." He paused briefly before adding, "Ethan will be joining us for the mission, is that alright with you?"

"Ethan? Why?" Luna looked genuinely confused. Ethan had attacked Logan previously, so why did he still want to bring him on the mission?

Logan smiled faintly, but there was a chill hidden beneath it.

"He’ll likely be helpful. His origin ability is going to be useful for where we’re going."

"Alright." Luna finally agreed. Not like she had any problems with it in the first place.

Logan closed the mission tab.

There were no descriptions for the missions.

No explanations.

Just plain, simple, direct objectives.

Logan guessed it was likely because he had discovered the truth about Ethan that he could now kill him.

’I wonder when I’ll meet the next chosen one.’ Logan thought to himself.

Although he felt pressured, a part of him was genuinely pleased.

Things had finally become more interesting.

’This game of chess is no longer between Ethan and I. In fact, Ethan is already about to be removed from the board. Rather, it’s between Raven and I now.’

Logan wanted to see just how much Raven would throw at him.

Luna stared at him for a few seconds longer before finally lying back down on the bed.

Although she still felt something was off about Logan tonight, exhaustion eventually overtook her curiosity.

"You’re seriously terrifying sometimes..." she muttered softly.

Logan merely smiled faintly without responding.

The room gradually fell silent once more.

Only the occasional rustling of curtains could be heard as the cold night breeze drifted through the slightly opened window.

Luna’s breathing slowly steadied.

Eventually, she fell asleep.

Meanwhile, Logan remained seated by the table.

Motionless.

His fingers rested lightly against the wooden surface as countless thoughts moved through his mind.

Chosen ones.

Gods.

The Primordial of Creation.

And Ethan.

The protagonist he himself had created.

Now reduced to a target.

Logan’s gaze remained fixed on the darkness outside the window.

Calm.

Quiet.

But beneath that calmness, his thoughts continued sharpening endlessly. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

He had originally believed entering this world meant surviving the plot.

Now, however...

He realised something else entirely.

The story no longer belonged to Ethan.

Nor did it belong to the gods.

If everything truly had become real...

Then even fate itself could bleed.

A faint smile slowly surfaced on Logan’s lips.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

The night passed quietly after that.

Gradually, the darkness began to recede.

The first rays of morning light filtered softly through the curtains, spilling across the room in pale gold.

Dust particles drifted lazily through the thin streams of sunlight.

Luna stirred faintly on the bed.

Her brows furrowed slightly before her eyes slowly opened.

For a moment, she looked disoriented.

Then her gaze landed on Logan.

Still seated at the table.

Exactly where he had been the entire night.

Luna blinked slowly.

"You didn’t sleep?"

Logan’s eyes shifted toward her calmly.

"No."

Luna sat up slowly, her hair slightly messy from sleep.

"You stayed there all night just thinking?"

"Mostly."

She stared at him for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh.

"You’re honestly weird."

Logan gave a faint shrug.

Outside, the academy was already beginning to wake up.

Voices echoed faintly in the distance.

Footsteps.

Movement.

Another day had begun.