Chapter 15: The Breaking Point

The air around Kuoh Academy felt heavy, as if the world was holding its breath, waiting for the inevitable storm. Kevin could feel it too—something dark and dangerous was lurking just beyond sight. He hadn't told Rias or Akeno, but ever since the encounter with the mysterious man at the shrine, the dreams had become more vivid, more intrusive.

They weren't just warnings anymore. They were memories.

Kevin leaned against the clubroom window, watching students chatter outside, blissfully unaware of the tension building beneath their peaceful lives. A soft knock on the door pulled him from his thoughts.

"Kevin?" Rias called, stepping inside with Akeno close behind. "We need to talk."

Kevin turned, his Sharingan flashing briefly out of habit. "What is it?"

Rias sat on the couch, her expression serious. "There's been another disturbance. This time, it's not just magic—it's a disappearance."

Kevin's heart sank. "Who?"

Akeno sighed, brushing her hair back. "One of the girls from your class. A transfer student named Miku. She went missing after school yesterday, and her family hasn't heard from her since."

Kevin frowned. He vaguely remembered Miku—a quiet girl who kept to herself. Nothing about her stood out, yet now she was at the center of something dangerous.

Rias folded her arms. "The energy traces around her house match what we felt at the shrine."

Kevin's jaw tightened. The Kiryuu Clan is moving faster than I thought.

Later that night, Kevin sat alone in his room, trying to piece everything together. The man from his dreams had hinted that Kevin wasn't who he thought he was—that his memories, his very existence, were part of something larger.

He clenched his fists. If these memories were real—if they truly belonged to a life before this one—then why couldn't he remember anything clearly? And what did it have to do with the Kiryuu Clan's plans?

His head throbbed, and just as he was about to lie down, another vision struck him—a memory not his own.

In it, Kevin stood in a battlefield, surrounded by flames. He saw faces—some familiar, some strange—and at the center of the chaos was the man from the shrine, smiling coldly. A voice echoed through the memory, soft but relentless.

"Everything repeats. Every choice leads to the same outcome. This time will be no different."

Kevin gasped, jolting back to reality. His heart pounded in his chest, and sweat clung to his skin. This was more than a vision—it was a glimpse of something inevitable.

A knock on his door interrupted his spiraling thoughts.

"Kevin?" It was Rias. Her voice was soft, but there was a tension in it.

He opened the door, and she stepped inside, her eyes searching his face. "Are you okay? You've been acting... distant since the shrine."

Kevin sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know, Rias. Something's wrong. I keep getting these dreams—visions—of things that feel too real to ignore."

Rias gave him a concerned look. "You think they're connected to the man we saw?"

Kevin nodded. "He knows me, Rias. Not just in some vague, mysterious way—he knows things about me that I don't even know."

Rias hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Whatever it is, we'll figure it out together. You're not alone in this."

Her words were reassuring, but Kevin knew deep down that this was a battle he would have to face himself.

The next day, Kevin, Rias, and Akeno returned to the shrine, hoping to find more clues. The air was thick with residual magic, and the strange symbols on the walls glowed faintly in the moonlight.

Kevin ran his fingers along one of the symbols, a strange sense of déjà vu washing over him. It was as if he had seen these markings before—in another life.

A sudden wave of dizziness hit him, and the world around him shifted.

He was no longer in the shrine. He stood in a dark void, face-to-face with the man from his dreams. The man's smirk was colder than ever, his eyes gleaming with dark amusement.

"Welcome back, Kevin," the man said softly. "Or should I call you by your other name?"

Kevin's breath caught in his throat. "What are you talking about?"

The man chuckled. "You still don't remember, do you? How many times must we play this game before you finally understand?"

Before Kevin could respond, the vision shattered, and he was back in the shrine. Rias and Akeno were staring at him, their expressions filled with concern.

"Kevin?" Rias asked gently. "What happened?"

Kevin shook his head, struggling to make sense of the vision. "He was there... in my mind. He called this a game—said I've done this before."

Akeno frowned. "Done what before?"

Kevin clenched his fists, frustration boiling inside him. "I don't know. But I'm going to find out."

That night, Kevin lay awake in bed, his mind racing. If this truly was a game, then it meant everything he was experiencing—the friendships, the battles, even the emotions—was part of some twisted cycle.

But there was one thing he knew for certain: he wasn't going to let this so-called fate dictate his life.

As he drifted off to sleep, Kevin made a silent vow. No matter what happened before... I'll end it this time.

Unbeknownst to him, his thoughts once again echoed in the hearts of Rias and Akeno, who lay awake in their own rooms, listening to the unspoken words.

And for the first time, they realized something they hadn't fully understood before.

Kevin wasn't just fighting for himself—he was fighting for them, too.