"Are you sure about this place?"

Zodiak was skeptical as he looked at the abandoned inn, doubting his companion's words. Apparently, Aneirin was in possession of an object that could detect nearby treasures and it was pointing toward this old building, which could crumble with a simple breeze.

"Yeah, it's here for sure."

The bard nodded his head then cleared his throat and retrieved one of his musical instruments which kind of resembled a guitar made from black wood.

"As I said before, you're the vanguard. I'm only here to watch."

Zodiak snorted but didn't object as he knew that Aneirin was kind of a scaredy-cat despite being decently strong. He never saw him fight but the poet had many treasures that could save his life and even resist Dark Magic.

Soon after, the two entered this seemingly empty inn, one prepared to fight and the other ready to flee. This place was located right outside the advanced city and was even ignored by the beggars so there was no one to stop them.

As they set foot inside, the creaking door closed and ghastly noises echoed throughout the shabby and small interior of the inn. The bard tightly held his instrument while Dark Magic danced around Zodiak.

"Why are you so afraid?"

Zodiak frowned as he saw Aneirin shake so much, wondering how he's actually an explorer. In response, the poet pointed at one particular corner and said:

"G-ghosts!"

The moment he said that, several illusory white silhouettes jumped at the duo. The ghosts released chilling cries as they all attacked at once, focusing mainly on the vanguard, who appeared to be more dangerous.

Their hands resembled long claws as they headed at the shrouded Zodiak, who transformed into a black cloud the moment the attack struck him. As if sentient, the cloud moved on its own and formed into Zodiak again after swiftly circling around the ghosts.

In total, there were four ghosts and all had the same appearance, an invisible lower half, and the figure of a woman with long black hair, very typical but still scary. Zodiak's stretched his hand and released a burst of Dark Magic which enveloped the ghosts, trapping them in some kind of a black sphere. It didn't take long for Aneirin to hear ear-piercing wails coming from within the sphere, whatever Zodiak did, it was definitely effective.

The cries lasted for half a minute before the sphere vanished along with the ghosts inside.

"I hafta say, that Dark Magic of yours is scarier than the ghosts."

Aneirin felt chills down his spines as he saw the Darkness revolving around Zodiak's hands, ready to devour everything in its way. It was similar to Void Magic but emitted a cold and uncomfortable aura which made him retreat further to avoid its range of effect. Though he was able to resist it back then, it didn't mean he can completely negate it. In fact, he can't win against his companion and, at most, he can defend for a while before he's forced to flee.

Once the pests were dealt with, all that was left was the eerie and lonely room which had old tables and chairs, broken counter and the inaudible sounds of the cold wind coming through the minuscule cracks all over the walls.

While ignoring the hesitant and motionless Aneirin, Zodiak searched turned the whole place upside down but found no secret basement or any signs of the Talisman.

…

"What the hell did you do?!"

Angry, Zodiak shouted at his companion while raising his hand and creating a dark wall that protected them from the flying debris which were purposefully aimed at them.

A few minutes earlier, the troubadour took out a strange red box and opened, causing the whole inn to break into countless pieces and a gigantic wraith to appear. It came out from underground and obliterated the inn, using it to attack the uninvited visitors.

"Why are you blaming me? I was trying to find the talisman!"

Aneirin yelled back while striking a comical pause and activating his instrument. As he saw the loudly shrieking wraith, he unconsciously swallowed some saliva and added:

"It was the damn inn! It was the talisman!"

As he informed his companion, he started playing inaudible musical sounds which were directed at Zodiak. Visible musical notes traveled from the bard to the target, magically enhancing his powers and making his powers feel inexplicably light.

Zodiak grumbled as he stared at the disgusting wraith, its body a mix of green and gray, its skin rotten and its eyes white with a total absence of pupils.

The wall continued blocking the incoming projectiles while several copies of Zodiak made purely from Dark Magic appeared around the wraith, each one holding a different weapon.

They jumped at the enemy from all directions and swung down their weapon. Swords were slashed, spears thrust and arrows fired.

Unfortunately, all the attacks went through the wraith dealing no damage, contrary to the case with the ghosts.

****

"A common misconception is that Time is strictly uniform, a straight line that goes from A to B."

The disembodied voice spoke to the young boy, who was dangling his feet in the cold pond, enjoying the chilling weather while listening to the speaker.

"But didn't you create it to be so?"

"What I created is something imperfect. In fact, Time can be bent, broken, or even bypassed and the means always and I mean always, vary. It was never a straight line but a circle, where the beginning is linked to the end and vice-versa."

Curious, the boy asked again:

"Then why does the Twelve think Time was born when the stranger came to the past. Did you purposefully let them think that?"

"I never said anything about it so they ended up concluding that on their own. After all, how exactly can Time be created, right?"

"Yes, how did you do it?"

Hearing this, the speaker chuckled and vaguely said:

"Just like everything else was created. How did the Twelve came to be? How were they able to form stars and create Races? It's a complex thing difficult to explain in words. It just happened, intentionally or not."

The boy stood up and raised his head, looking at the one and only tree in this garden. It was tall and strangely thin with gray-colored branches and white leaves.

"Why are you always hiding? Why are you refusing to show yourself to me? I want to see whom I'm speaking to."

"You'll see me when the time comes, child."

The boy stomped his feet, annoyed of hearing the same words over and over again.

"You always say that and I'm bored. You no longer teach me anything and I have ran out of books to read."

…

"Most living beings have one life that revolves around one cycle."

The voice spoke to the absent-minded boy, explaining things to him yet again.

"What's a cycle?"

"A cycle is a period of time that follows a unique path, and, in it, time usually isn't disturbed. For example, someone is born, grows and lives happily or miserably then he or she dies. That's a cycle. It differs for each individual and it can either be very long or pitifully short. However, in certain cases, a person's life is cut into different parts and each part is a cycle."

"What about me?"

"Your life revolves around two cycles and soon, you'll enter the second one. With the beginning of the new cycle, time reverts back but the second beginning line is randomized, for the most part. Furthermore, no two cycles are identical. Even if whoever experiences them thinks they're the same, there has to be some kind of change, which can be minuscule or absurdly big."

The boy thought for a moment before asking:

"Then what about reincarnation? If someone reincarnates, does it mean they enter another cycle?"

"No, to reincarnate is to have your soul travel from one body to another while keeping all the memories or a portion of them. A cycle is different, it is something not affected by time yet strongly reliant on it. I know, it's illogical but that's how it is."