Chapter 52: what lies ahead
The earth around Eren stilled as his concentration broke. He opened his eyes and turned toward them, the last of the stone formations crumbling gently back into sand. His expression was calm and composed, showing no surprise at being discovered.
"Eren, you... like?" Lyra stammered, the words tumbling out in shock before she could compose a coherent thought.
A smile spread across Eren’s face—not the shy, hesitant smile they remembered, but one of quiet confidence. It transformed his features, softening the sharp edges that had formed during their years apart.
"We should walk," he said, his voice low and measured. "There’s much to discuss, and these walls have too many ears." He gestured toward an archway set into the far wall of the training chamber, different from the one they had entered through.
The archway led to a winding passage that gradually sloped upward, eventually opening into a secluded garden unlike any Lyra had seen before. Stone paths wound between pools of water so still they looked like pieces of sky fallen to earth. Flowering vines with blooms of deep indigo and silver climbed trellises of twisted copper, and trees with bark that seemed to shimmer with inner light provided dappled shade.
They walked in silence for several moments, Eren leading them to a small clearing where three stone benches formed a triangle around a central fountain. The water in the fountain didn’t fall but rather rose upward in defiance of natural law, forming intricate patterns in the air before dissolving into mist.
"So," Lyra said as they settled onto the benches, "that’s how you gained the earth element... through TUNA." She shook her head in wonder. "I’ve always thought the prophecy was just a story formed over generations. Mother made me believe it was nothing more than superstition."
At the mention of their mother, Eren’s face transformed. The warmth vanished gradually, like sunlight disappearing behind storm clouds. His jaw tightened, and his eyes, which had been soft with nostalgia moments before, hardened with an emotion Lyra couldn’t immediately identify.
Silence stretched between them. A leaf drifted down from one of the shimmering trees, landing on the surface of a nearby pool without disturbing the water.