After the conflict at the pasture, Jack and his gang vanished from Historia's daily view.
Even when they occasionally caught sight of Aeternus in the distance, they would scurry away as quickly as mice spotting a cat, their eyes filled with resentment and wariness.
The dark clouds hanging over Historia's head seemed to have dispersed somewhat.
Spring gave way to autumn, and time flowed quietly within the Walls.
Aeternus still went to the pasture every day: herding cattle, working, and keeping Historia company.
Under Busch's combat instruction of "practicality above all else," combined with repeated breakdowns, analysis, and simulated practice within the [Accelerated World], his body underwent visible changes.
His formerly soft, feeble punches now carried force and came from tricky angles.
His stance had become far more stable; at the very least, he could no longer be pushed over so easily.
Busch patted him on the back and praised him. "Good kid. You've got talent! You're made to be a soldier!"
Aeternus smiled shyly.
Deep down, he knew that most of this "talent" came from that bizarre white sea of sand, from the mysterious [Paths] of the Eldians, and from the formidable analytical and learning abilities he had possessed as a researcher in his previous life.
The relationship between him and Historia was quietly undergoing a fundamental change.
Solid ice was slowly melting beneath the sunlight.
She no longer kept her distance like a startled rabbit and had begun responding to his casual conversation.
Whenever he told stories about amusing things in the fields or Busch's hunting experiences, the corners of her mouth would occasionally curl into the slightest yet genuine smile.
Like the first touch of green emerging after early spring snow had melted.
During breaks from work, she would even secretly slip him a shriveled wild fruit that she had saved for herself, though she had washed it spotlessly clean.
Aeternus accepted it with care.
The fruit's sour astringency seemed to transform into a singular sweetness in his mouth, nourishing the parched ground of his heart.
While resting beside a haystack, Aeternus watched the girl quietly sorting dry grass at his side, unable to fully relax his thoughts.
He could not help considering the source of his strange ability and the role Historia played in it.
Why her, of all people?
Why could her touch, her proximity, become a stable bridge linking him to the [Paths]?
A vague conjecture began to take shape in his mind, growing clearer by the day.
Among the incomplete fragments of future history he knew, there had been vague mentions that the royal bloodline within the Walls possessed a certain special power, one intimately connected to the [Paths] and the power of the Titans...
Combined with the rumors Busch had previously told him about her origins, a startling possibility surfaced.
"Could Historia... be related by blood to the Fritz family, the Eldian royal family?"
The thought alarmed him.
But it was merely speculation based on scattered scraps of information, without a shred of evidence.
History textbooks would not record the name of an illegitimate daughter abandoned in a corner of a pasture.
And even if they did, the pitiful scraps of historical knowledge he possessed had long since been returned to his professors in his previous life.
He shook his head and temporarily forced down those complicated, dangerous thoughts.
Whatever her origins might be.
At this moment, she was simply Historia.
His friend.
The first person besides his parents whom he wished to protect with every ounce of his strength in this unfamiliar era.
That was enough.
The peaceful days were broken once more.
Busch had to leave for an entire day because the pasture owner had assigned him an urgent purchasing errand.
On the previous occasions when Busch had briefly left, Jack's group had only shot malicious looks from afar or pulled mocking faces whenever they crossed paths. They had not truly dared to provoke him.
For a time, Aeternus believed Busch's intimidation and the fact that he had shown himself to be "not so easy to mess with" had worked.
But he had underestimated the backlash that came when authority was challenged within a group of children, as well as Jack's deeply vindictive nature.
As far as Jack was concerned, Busch had come to his home after the last incident, causing him to be scolded and even physically punished by his family. He had lost all face before his companions.
He had been swallowing that grievance ever since.
Now that Busch was going to be gone for so long, Jack saw his chance to wipe away his humiliation and restore his prestige.
That afternoon, Aeternus and Historia had just finished their work and were sitting beneath the shade of a large tree with lush branches.
Following the method his mother had taught him, Aeternus was weaving a little grasshopper from flexible blades of grass.
Historia watched quietly.
Sunlight danced across her golden hair through gaps in the leaves, as though scattering a shower of broken gold over it.
"Look over there! They're there!"
A malicious voice, deliberately raised, shattered the afternoon calm.
Aeternus looked up, his gaze instantly sharpening and turning calm.
Led by Jack, four children strode toward them aggressively, blocking their way.
Jack stood half a head taller than Aeternus and had a sturdy build. With his arms folded across his chest, his face wore undisguised provocation and the pleasure of revenge.
Behind him followed a tall, silent, gloomy boy, a chubby boy with considerable strength, and a lean, monkey-like boy with alert, darting eyes.
"Hey, Andres brat, that brute Busch isn't here today!" Jack spat on the ground. His gaze moved between Aeternus and Historia, who instinctively shrank behind him, before settling on Aeternus with the teasing amusement of a cat playing with a mouse. "You got lucky last time. You had someone backing you up. Today, we're settling the score properly! We'll teach you what happens when you stick your nose into other people's business!"
Historia's small hand nervously gripped the back of Aeternus's shirt, trembling faintly.
Aeternus took a deep breath and gently placed the half-finished grasshopper in her slightly sweaty palm.
Then he rose to his feet, shielding her more firmly behind him.
"Don't be afraid," he said quietly, turning his head toward her. There was a steadiness in his voice far beyond his age, and it strangely soothed her taut nerves. "Step back a little and just watch. I told you I would protect you."
He turned back to face Jack and the others.
The frustration of being helplessly beaten last time, combined with the confidence he had accumulated through these days of arduous training in the [Accelerated World], fused into a cold, intensely focused fighting spirit.
Just as they were dissatisfied with the result of the last round, when their numbers had only earned them a reprimand from their parents.
He, too, was dissatisfied with his own helplessness back then, with the predicament of having to rely on someone else to bail him out.
Since neither side was satisfied with the last round...
Then this round would determine the truth through strength.
"How are we settling it?" Aeternus asked calmly, his gaze sweeping over the four opponents like a scanner.
His mind raced as he assessed them—
Jack: strong, hot-tempered, likely their main attacker.
The tall one: long arms; he needed to control the distance.
The fat one: his lower body was probably unstable, his center of gravity too high.
The skinny one: likely agile; he needed to watch out for grappling and harassment.
"We'll beat you until you're crying for your parents, begging on your knees, then make that bastard kneel and apologize to us!" Jack snarled. As though he could already see himself winning, he waved his hand sharply. "Get him! Teach him a lesson!"
Like hyenas that had caught the scent of blood, all four rushed forward together.
The instant they moved, Aeternus concentrated, focusing every one of his senses on a single point—
Bzzzz!
The world abruptly slowed in his eyes!
Jack's charging footsteps became ponderous and slow, the savage grin on his face seemingly frozen in place.
The path of the tall boy's swinging fist was perfectly clear; Aeternus could even predict where it would land.
The fat boy's attempt to spread his arms and tackle him looked clumsy and full of openings.
Even the skinny boy's small maneuver around the flank was entirely within his sight.
Those dozen-odd seconds of accelerated time were as brief as an instant in reality, yet they gave Aeternus invaluable room to plan and execute his tactics.
He moved!
Rather than meeting Jack's strongest initial charge head-on, he exploited the minute opening he had perceived in the accelerated state. With a swift, low sliding step, he barely evaded the attack's edge.
At the same time, his left leg snapped out in a short, powerful low side kick, striking the outside of Jack's supporting knee with precision as he charged forward.
"Argh!" Jack cried out in pain. His momentum broke, and the stabbing pain in his joint made him stumble, nearly toppling over.
Almost simultaneously, Aeternus used the slight recoil from the kick to twist his body. His right elbow shot backward, driving straight into the round, unprotected soft ribs of the fat boy trying to grab him from behind.
Thump! A dull impact sounded alongside the fat boy's pained grunt.
Clutching his stomach, he staggered back repeatedly, his face turning pale before he dropped heavily onto the ground, unable to catch his breath for the moment.
Only then did the tall boy's long arm finally swing in.
Aeternus had just exited the accelerated state. The familiar swelling pain flared in his head from the sudden expenditure, but his body was already responding according to Busch's training and his countless simulations.
He raised his left arm to block.
Smack! He felt the force travel through his arm, but his feet remained rooted firmly to the ground.
Then he clenched his right fist. Just as Busch had taught him, he twisted his waist, drove his shoulder forward, and unleashed his strength—
A heavy hook smashed into the tall boy's poorly guarded ribs!
The tall boy grunted, pain flashing across his face. His attack slowed at once, and he bent over, clutching his ribs.
Only the skinny boy remained.
Seeing that things were going badly, he tried to launch a sneak attack from the side, reaching for Aeternus's hair to throw him off balance.
It was as though Aeternus had eyes in the back of his head. He abruptly tilted his head aside, seized the other's thin wrist with precise timing, and smoothly used a simple trip to take advantage of his forward momentum, cleanly throwing the skinny boy to the ground.
It had all happened in a flash, practically within a single exchange.
When Aeternus steadied himself again with a faint gasp and assumed the defensive stance Busch had taught him—one he had refined and adjusted himself—
Half of the four were already down.
Jack clutched his knee and bared his teeth in pain, his face filled with disbelief.
The fat boy was still sitting on the ground, not yet recovered enough to breathe properly.
The tall boy rubbed his ribs, fear visible on his face.
Only the skinny boy scrambled back to his feet, yet he stared at Aeternus in alarm and uncertainty, not daring to approach again.
Jack was both shocked and furious.
He could not understand how, in such a short time, that little runt who had previously been unable to fight back and could only take a beating had become so difficult to deal with.
His movements were not flashy, even somewhat plain.
Yet every strike was fast and accurate, landing where it hurt most, as though he could foresee their movements.
"You... you..." Jack pointed at Aeternus, too enraged to speak. Humiliation and pain intertwined as his face flushed red.
Aeternus did not pursue him. He merely watched him calmly.
There was no longer cowardice or anger in those amber eyes.
In their place was a calmness and sense of control that made a chill rise from the depths of Jack's heart.
As though everything lay within his grasp.
"Do you still want to settle the score?" Aeternus asked. His voice was not loud, yet it carried an unquestionable force as it echoed across the silent grassland.
Jack looked at his companions, sprawled on the ground and temporarily unable to rise, then looked at Aeternus. Though smaller than him, Aeternus seemed unbreakable, his eyes cold.
Putting on a brave front despite his fear, Jack threw out one final threat. "Y-you just wait! This isn't over!"
He called to his companions, and they supported one another as they fled in disgrace, running even faster than they had arrived.
They seemed to have lost even the courage to turn back and shout more threats.
Only after their figures completely vanished at the end of the path did Aeternus finally relax.
A dull pain throbbed through his arm and the shin that had collided with Jack's leg, while his mind was somewhat exhausted as well.
But his heart was filled with an unprecedented sense of exhilaration and solidity.
This was his first victory in earning respect and safety through his own strength.
He turned around.
Historia was still standing where she was, tightly clutching the woven grasshopper in her hand.
Her azure eyes were wide open, and fear was no longer in them.
Instead, they shone with shock, disbelief, and a sparkling light called hope and admiration.
She looked at Aeternus as though he were a true hero who had descended into the mortal world to protect her.
Aeternus smiled at her, but the motion tugged at the injury at the corner of his mouth, making him hiss.
Historia immediately ran over. Unlike last time, she did not hesitate, gently touching the reddened spot on his arm with her small hand.
Then she looked at his face.
Her eyes were filled with pure concern and gratitude.
This time, it did not trigger the [Paths].
That strange connection seemed to reveal itself only under certain conditions.
But something firmer and warmer seemed to take deep root between them on that sunlit afternoon.
It was not merely the dependence of the protected upon her protector.
It was also the profound recognition and trust that one lonely soul felt for another soul willing to stand up for her.
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