Whispers of Destiny

Chapter 15: The Time-Slip Incident

It was just another ordinary day—well, as ordinary as things could get with Kaede, Mayu, Yeoyeon, and Dahyun hanging out. They were strolling through the city streets, enjoying the cool evening air, when they came across Kotone standing across the road. He was a little ahead of them, on the other side of a busy intersection.

The traffic light turned red for cars, but the pedestrian signal clicked to green. Kotone, with his usual carefree demeanor, stepped forward without a second thought. He was about to cross, completely unaware of the danger speeding toward him.

Kaede and Mayu, walking side by side, both immediately noticed the car hurtling down the road at an alarming speed. The car was way too close to stop, and before either of them could say a word, Kaede's instincts kicked in. She broke into a sprint, eyes locked on Kotone as she raced to shove him out of harm's way.

As Kaede dashed forward, something sudden caught her attention—above Kotone's head, a glowing symbol appeared, a shining mark she instantly recognized. The sign.

The realization hit her like a wave. Kotone is the one I'm supposed to protect. The mission that had eluded her for so long, the confusion that had plagued her, suddenly made sense.

But there was no time to think. As Kaede reached out to grab Kotone, her body collided with his, pushing him to safety. The screeching tires of the speeding car were the last thing she heard before everything went black.

In an instant, Kaede felt the impact—she had been struck by the car herself. The shock of the blow made everything seem distant. Her mind raced as her body hit the cold pavement.

Then—everything stopped.

The world around her froze. The cars, the people, the very air around her stood still as if time had suddenly been suspended.

Kaede blinked, utterly confused. Why was everything so still? Why hadn't the car hit her before this moment? She hadn't stopped time. Had someone else done it?

She looked around, panic starting to rise in her chest. And then, through the stillness, she saw a figure walking toward her. It was Seoyeon, moving as though he were simply out for a casual stroll.

"Leader Seoyeon?" Kaede called, her voice trembling. "Did you...?"

"You should stop time before dashing to him like that," Seoyeon said with a sigh.

"You could've gotten yourself hurt."

Kaede was stunned. "Did you stop the time?"

Seoyeon didn't answer right away. He just shook his head and sighed again, the frustration clear in his expression.

"Well, I did. You were about to make a mess of things, so I stepped in. You really need to be more careful, Kaede."

"You're lucky I was around. You should have thought things through before running into traffic like that."

With a flick of his fingers, Seoyeon reset everything. The frozen world around Kaede unthawed. The cars resumed moving. People continued walking, and Kotone was once again crossing the street, oblivious to the chaos that had almost unfolded.

And just as suddenly as he had appeared, Seoyeon vanished without a trace, leaving Kaede alone in the middle of the intersection, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

Kaede's heart raced as she tried to shake off the disorientation from the time manipulation. Time resumed in real time, the street bustling again as the light turned green for pedestrians.