Chapter 7: At Least the Wi-Fi Works

“That day, around 11:17 PM, I died. That was… an hour ago. Or maybe… sixteen hours from now?”

“Don’t get lost in absurd details.”

My back still hurts. My body had healed, but the spot where I’d been hit kept aching. Strangely enough, I recovered right away the last time I traveled back in time.

“We followed orders. I went with Ien to Central Park; we talked to the bellboy at the Malberg Hotel, and he gave us the gear. Then we started setting up the computers and those other… science-y things I don’t really get.”

“They were frequency trackers, signal jammers, data servers… everything needed to monitor district activity,” added my lovely ruby-eyed angel.

“Right. Thanks, Ien. Uh… sometime in the afternoon, the hotel staff brought us lunch. Tuna sandwiches with garlic mayo. And for Ien—”

“Skip that part. Did you leave the hotel?”

There were four of us in the office. Behind the desk, sitting in an adorably casual way, was a blond kid with tied-up but messy hair, wearing clothes that suited an old man more than a child. Erbis Nath. Captain of the Special Unit of the Defense Department. A temporal stone bearer, similar to myself.

“We stopped… a robbery.”

“Oh god… I don’t even want to ask,” said a short-haired girl with jet-black hair. “Let me guess: you chased a pickpocket and used your superhuman powers…”

That was Amélie, our teammate and one of the company’s top agents. She’s sarcastic, but deep down, she’s got a soft side. I was lucky enough to see it before I died.

“Actually, they hit an ATM and took off in a van. We gave chase. I jumped into a cab and yelled, ‘Follow that car!’… He spat on me and kicked me out.”

“Figures. So we probably ended up chasing them on foot,” Ien rubbed her chin, thinking. “Glad I don’t have to explain actions I haven’t done yet.”

“We’ll have to alert the officers on duty. Was it close to the hotel?”

As he asked, Erbis took a sip of his weird drink. It was blue, smelled like herbs… I think it’s ink. My head’s starting to spin.

“Yeah, two blocks away. Some street-side bank… I don’t remember the name, but it had a big sign with a smiling lady and text that read: ‘Open 24/7!’”

“I hate to admit it… but I know exactly which one that is,” Amélie groaned and grabbed her head.

“Were there any complications? You were supposed to die at the district hospital, not during a chase.” The captain began typing on his phone.

“Ien was shot.” I chose not to mention she took the bullet for me. “I rushed her to the ER. When she was about to come out of surgery… I was attacked.”

“Did you see who did it?”

“Take a wild guess. She has a black mask, red markings… go figure.”

“How did they hit you? Where did you feel the blow?”

“I don’t know. I don’t even remember when they struck. But it was on my back, where my stone is. One moment I was standing… the next, I was on the ground. Then… I woke up in my bed. I wish it had been a mere nightmare.

“If it had been the guy with the X on his mouth, you’d have felt time slowing down. Maybe it was a [Topological]-type stone?” asked Erbis.

“[Topological]?”

“Remember how temporal stones are classified by rank? Well, there’s also a category based on the type of effect they produce. [Topological] ones alter space like Amélie. Yours and mine are all [Chronological]-type.”

“Temporal ones tend to be the most brutal. Just look at the Deux Machina that is Ien,” Amélie chuckled. “But there's [Spatial Sensitivity] and nerve reinforcement, that's how you defend yourself... though it's not the same with [Topological] abilities. Don't even try it, Robin.”

“I see… but even so, she could’ve stopped time… except it was a woman’s voice.”

“I said, you would have felt it. I mean, when a [Chronological] ability grabs you... there's always that feeling that they're messing with your head. So far, the only exception has been you two... Well, I guess that breaks the rule”

“There’s something… bothering me,” said Kuroha Shinomine, after listening in silence for a while.

“Nya… no, my back… mmm… again…”

“But this is the first time I’m touching you…”

As if jumping through time wasn’t enough, I was once again sexually harassed (not that I’m complaining) by the taciturn, long-haired girl.

“How did they know I was at the hospital? Is this redheaded kitty that recognizable?” she asked while assaulting my back with her magical fingers.

It really was a good question. I had no answer for it. I’d already experienced Ien’s nerve expansion once, so I was sure they hadn’t used it this time. Maybe she’d just recognized me. There was also the commotion from the chase. The Blacklist knows my face, after all. Actually… is this base even safe? When they brought me here, they blindfolded and deafened me. Same when I left. I doubt any terrorists followed me from company HQ.

The discussion drifted through theories—coincidence, facial recognition AI, data leaks… but in the end, no solid conclusion. The only thing certain was that the assassin knew I was in the hospital… and could kill without being noticed.

“Here’s how we’ll proceed,” said Erbis, closing his tablet. “We’ll relocate your lodging. We have other secure locations. Amélie, you go alone to pick up Albert. Keep public exposure to a minimum.”

“In that case, wouldn’t it be better if he stayed here?” Ien asked. “He’s a rookie. We’d have more chances to train him.”

“Remember he can’t stray too far from you,” Amélie replied. “If he stays, his head might explode. We’ve still got a few weeks before the stone recovery mission begins.”

“Besides, he’ll make good bait.” Erbis reclined in his chair. “We still don’t know how they found him at the hospital, but if the assassin strikes again, we’ll get more data. “Make sure Reed stays close.”

“Bait, huh… I’ve been called worse,” I said, trying to laugh it off. “Fine, kid—uh, sir.”

I almost called him “kid”… and almost died again.

“Captain, I’m concerned about Robin’s ability. His stone took around two days to recharge last time. What if the assassin comes after him again before that? He could die—for real.”

“We don’t yet understand the full scope of a Link’s stone. Most [Universal] rank abilities are compelling, but that doesn’t mean they can’t activate partially. If Robin’s stone charges halfway, it might let him rewind time—maybe just a few minutes. That could be enough to avoid the attack.”

The captain’s logic made sense… but I wasn’t too keen on dying again.

“There’s also the matter of the stone’s auto-activation. Robin told us he didn’t do anything, but it still triggered and sent him back,” Amélie added. And she was right—I totally blacked out, then woke up in my bed that morning. “It means if he dies instantly, the stone might activate on its own. That boosts his survival chances.”

“One more thing. My stone… doesn’t recharge right away. It’s been hours since I woke up, and it still hasn’t recovered a single charge. I don’t know if it’s the type of ability or what, but if I die again like this… it could be permanent.”

“A peculiar ability for a stone,” Erbis muttered, scratching his head. “I don’t want to waste the opportunity of having the Blacklist close… Shinomine, escort them to their new lodging. That should ease Miss Reed’s mind a bit.”

“Sir… that would leave Amélie alone. I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Ien replied.

“Someone else will cover her, Shinomine. I’d never leave a flank open. As for the rest—Reed, make sure Robin doesn’t draw attention until his stone is back online.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Y-yes, the reinforcements are appreciated, Captain, but…”

“This is my final decision. You will proceed with the planned operation and wait in the break room. I’ll make sure Basil has everything ready for you.” He made a call on his phone with a few monosyllables, then turned back to us. “Amélie, I need to talk to you to choose your new partner. The rest of you, please leave.”

Despite Ien’s and my concerns, there was nothing else to do. It feels horrible being a disposable piece in a game I can’t influence. On the other hand… I’ll be in good company, fufu. Maybe a bit of danger isn’t so bad. I mean, at least I won’t have to stop robberies anymore.

We left the office to wait for instructions. The break room had a pool table and the new PlayZtation Century. What are video games like these days? Has BTA VI come out yet?

“Amélie. Watch them. I don’t want you to leave their side,” Erbis said quietly, making sure no one else could hear. “The islands are huge, and so is Rossanetti’s population. Once you let them out of the station, follow them from a distance—be as cautious as possible. The fact that they could identify Robin without [Spatial Sensitivity] is worrying. I don’t rule out coincidence, but…”

“…but we might have infiltrators. I’ve suspected as much,” Amélie replied, as concerned as the captain. “Thanks to my portal creation ability, I’m the best choice for remote surveillance and rapid support.”

“I also want you to leave a portal in my office.”

“Really? You think that’s necessary?” In almost fifteen years of knowing him, Amélie had never seen him this tense.

“We’re approaching the goal. Only four of the twenty-four stones remain. We have twelve in our possession. If they’re after Robin, we risk losing the Link’s stone. We can’t allow that. So, if the need arises, I want to be able to intervene immediately.”

“Understood, Captain,” Amélie sighed before speaking again. “One more thing… what do you think about Robin’s power?”

“I don’t know. So far, only one axiom about temporal stones has been broken. The fewer the links, the more extraordinary the ability. We confirmed this with the bearer of two links. For now, Robin’s is useful, yes, but it doesn’t seem as powerful as a three-link stone. It’s frustrating to think we’ve lost so many agents for an inferior stone.”

“Being able to change the past is powerful… but without control, it’s questionable.”

“There’s another issue: the most clichéd problem in time travel—the butterfly effect. I don’t think a hurricane will happen, but even a small change can alter the future Robin knows. That means his information could be outdated or worse—a double-edged sword.”

Erbis spun his chair to face the window overlooking the underground base’s courtyard: an artificial field with trees and grass, lit by a white light perfectly mimicking the moon.

“From here I can hear the shooting range. Everyone works hard so this city can turn the page. We won’t let a few antisocials destroy the peace we’re trying to build.”

He took another sip of his blue drink.

“And, Captain… stop drinking that stuff. One day it’s going to tear your guts out.”

“This is ideal for my developing body. It’s full of vitamins and minerals.”

“…As you say, Captain,” Amélie barely contained her laughter. “Alright, I’ll prepare the portal. Are you sure you want it in your office?”

“I want it where I can reach it in less than a second.”

"You know," —a thought crossed Amélie’s mind, something important— "there are many of us who don’t really know what happened that day… maybe we should ask Robin a few more questions. Events we could prevent, things we might be overlooking."

“The real question is, how much can we actually change? And how much should we believe? If events are already different, like a row of dominoes, things might not play out the way he remembers. I don’t think there’s much we can really do…”

“Today, at 2:00 PM, the I.A. party’s campaign launch speech will take place,” Amélie said. “Maybe we should ask him if anything important happened. You know… what the plans were…”

“One of the first things we asked him was whether anything important happened that day. If something really had, he would’ve heard about it somehow. We should just stick to the plan and only act if something truly calls for it.”

Amélie nodded and set about preparing the portal. The captain, meanwhile, could only think to himself, “The end of the mission is taking its toll on everyone. There’s so little left… before it’s all over. It’s been too many years.”

A long day was coming, with new orders, a threat more present than ever… and the charming company of Ien and Kuroha. I suppose there are worse ways to wait for someone to try killing you again.

July 17, 1325 – 12:03 PM - First Jump

“Ugh… the mag-lev train is way too cramped,” I said, stretching as I got off at the transfer platform. “Nice, but cramped. It’s surprising they don’t have any graffiti and keep that spotless white.”

“How was life a century ago?” Ien asked, carrying her suitcase. “There weren’t trains, right?”

“Yeah, but they smelled like pee, were noisy, and slow compared to this. I admit now I really feel I’m traveling in the future on these.”

“Sounds glamorous,” Amélie’s sarcasm was so sharp it almost hurt. “I guess they also had spas inside the trains, right?”

“Don’t mess with me… there’s a spa on the cars?”

Everything had an artificial lavender scent. The station was saturated with air fresheners and scent diffusers. Sure, I get wanting everything to smell nice, but a spa? Seriously?

“Amélie, don’t lie to the poor kitty. It’s bad to upset cats… it stresses them out.”

“I feel like I just lost several rights with that comment, Kuroha.”

“I don’t recall giving you permission to call me by my first name, bad kitty.”

“Ah, sorry, sorry,” I apologized with an exaggerated bow. “I forgot that was before I went back in time. You gave me permission before I returned to my bed.”

“In that case, it’s fine, bad kitty.”

“Kuroha… do you really take the cat thing that seriously?”

The world has changed a lot… and so have I. Beyond my new appearance, I hardly recognize anything in the city. It’s funny, because as a kid, my grandfather and I used to spend entire days wandering these streets, admiring every structure. He was a fan of late Baroque and what he called “decadent steel architecture.” His favorite building was the Rossanetti multimodal station. Back then, it was called Ravenport.

Imagine a warehouse made almost entirely of structural beams, with diagonal pillars and a tangled mess of cables acting as tensioners. At first glance, it looked like chaos, but if you stood in certain spots, everything fit perfectly. The cables and beams formed repeating geometric patterns. Tessellations, I think they were called. Part of that design still remains, but they ruined it a bit by filling everything with walls and corridors to connect the platforms. It lost much of its charm.

“A hundred years haven’t passed in vain…” I murmured. “From cell phones with buttons to holographic screens. From huge computers to chips the size of a fingernail… And the buildings… look like they came out of an architectural delirium. My grandfather would have loved to see this.”

“You told me about him before. How was he?” Ien asked as we moved toward the exit.

“The definition of a dreamer. He founded his studio after the Great War and worked mainly for foreign clients. The SkyWard was going to be his first major work in Anesse… and also his most ambitious. He was always smiling, a workaholic, passionate… and a bit crazy.”

“Once he pulled me out of school without telling anyone, just to show me a building demolition. He wore a hat, dark glasses, and that old theatrical air… so people thought he was kidnapping me. My mom and grandma nearly screamed him deaf.”

“He’s the one who planted the idea of becoming an architect in my head.”

The atmosphere softened, becoming intimate. Even Amélie, who rarely shows emotion, whispered that it was a nice story. Ien hugged me without saying a word. Kuroha, meanwhile, stroked my head as if I were really her cat. Literally.

I was spoiled by the three of them.

Grandpa… if this doesn’t get me laid, I’m seriously considering growing a beard.

“Amélie! What a surprise to see you here!” A familiar voice interrupted us.

“Ah, Millie. Nice to see you,” Amélie smiled with unusually sincere courtesy.

Millie approached with small bouncy steps, her braid bobbing with each one. She wore the Café Primavera uniform, though with a jacket on because of the station’s cold… and leggings under her skirt. I guess there’s still some morals left in this place.

“Girls, this is Millie Baker, a school friend. She works at the best café in Rossanetti.”

How to tell her I already knew her?

“Nice to meet you, Millie. I’m Robin, Amélie’s new partner.”

We’re supposed to introduce ourselves as part of the Citizen Security Service. That’s the public name of the company’s defense department. Did I mention the police here are private? In this city, Line Corrector holds a monopoly on public security. Sounds a bit mafia-like, I know. They even charge people a monthly fee, but… honestly, it’s better than the corrupt police we had before. Or so I think. I’m still getting to know the company.

Greetings went on until Amélie mentioned that someday we’d stop by Café Primavera. Millie looked a little uncomfortable—it was obvious: she works somewhere where looks matter more than coffee flavor. Still, she said she’d be happy to welcome us.

“Millie, we’re coming!” a female voice shouted from the platform. “Don’t just stand there, grandma’s getting impatient!”

Despite the crowd’s noise, her high-pitched voice was perfectly clear.

“Coming, Liz!” Millie replied, adding a sorry gesture. “Well, girls, I have to go. See you!”

“Bye, Millie!” we all said in unison.

The girl waiting for her was taller, with orange shoulder-length hair. She wore tight jeans and a tank top that showed her midriff. She was… very sexy.

…

…

…

…I have a feeling I already know her.

“Robin, snap out of it; we need to get to the hotel,” Ien said, giving me a gentle push. “We still have to pick up supplies.”

“Incredible, you just met her and you’re already in love,” Amélie teased with a soft laugh.

“N-no, no! Of course not. It’s… never mind.”

“Or maybe you liked the friend?” Kuroha shot me a mischievous smile. “Ien, pull up your shirt. Robin enjoys looking her belly.”

“W-wait! Kuroha, what are you doing?!” Ien blushed as Kuroha tried to provoke a visual epiphany.

“Go ahead, Kuroha, you can do it!”

It's a refreshing day. Fingers crossed I don’t end up dead this time… and that fate has something better in store for me.

July 17, 1325 – 9:46 PM - First Jump

“Aagh… Ugh… Aaaah…” I struggled to breathe “It’s… happening… again…”

“Does it hurt? It hurts us more,” spat the masked assassin, holding me at her feet, surrounded by a pool of my blood. “You’re government dogs. Our identity is Anesse. No matter how hard you try, you won’t stop us. Anesse is our homeland!”

She was furious. Each word hit hard. Her voice hurt as much as the wound she’d left me. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak. I had a red fountain of blood coming out of my mouth.

“Your stone will be better used in our hands, bearer of a Link.”

“No… no…” I tried to speak, but the blood choked me. “Ien… Amélie… where… are they?”

How long had it been since the last cycle? My stone hadn’t even started to recharge. Not a hint. Was this my last breath? I hadn’t taken the threat seriously. What an idiot. What an arrogant, damn idiot.

…Idiot.