CHAPTER 115: FROZEN IN TIME

Hermes froze at Ymir’s words, as the elevator door slowly closed.

A lead. On Eirwyn.

He hadn’t expected that, not here, not now. The words scraped against something raw inside him, and before he knew it...

His hand shot out, pushing elevator doors back open!

He ran, gripping Ymir’s shoulder so tightly that the fabric of his immaculate coat crumpled.

"How long have you known?" Hermes demanded, his voice sharp, nearly feral. "Where is he? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?"

The questions tumbled out one after another, more like growling than words. His eyes flashed, wild. He didn’t realize his nails had dug in until Ymir’s gaze hardened and his breath hissed through his teeth.

Ymir’s breath hitched, and...

A thin wall of frost blossomed instantly between them!

The ice prince had shoved him back with precise force using Cryoshift, jaw taut. "Don’t!"

His tone was sharp, but beneath it was the chill of unease. ".... You look like you’re going to bite me again."

Hermes blinked, breath coming fast. And then he saw it...

Just barely peeking out from Ymir’s collar, pale against pale skin. A scar, faint but undeniable, etched like ghostly dotted lines on his neck.

Even after Rewind’s healing, the wound had remained. Apple’s attack. Apple’s teeth tearing into Ymir when Hermes had lost control.

The realization doused him like cold water. His grip faltered, his chest tightening with shame.

"I’m sorry." Hermes said quietly, lowering his hand. "That wasn’t... I didn’t mean to..."

His voice cracked, softer now, almost gentle.

Ymir exhaled, the frost between them thinning. His eyes lingered on Hermes a moment longer, gauging, before he sighed and turned away.

"I was planning to tell you about Eirwyn later after work, but if you’re so eager....." Ymir muttered. "Follow me."

Hermes obliged, his expression grim.

***

The walk through the Sixth Department’s offices, a sight that Hermes never wanted to see again.

Hermes hadn’t set foot here since he’d transferred back to the Sixth Department after the phony war. The sleek, sterile walls hadn’t changed, nor had the people. His former co-workers glanced up from their desks when they saw him trailing behind Ymir.

The reaction was instant.

"Oh, Hermes! Long time no see!"

"Look at you, from rags to riches, from F-rank to A-rank..."

"Guess miracles do happen."

Their smiles were too wide, their voices too sweet. The same people who had made his eight months here as an intern hell.

The same voices that once barked at him to fetch coffee, to redo paperwork three times because they’d ’changed their minds’, to mop up their spills when they were too lazy to do it themselves. The endless condescension, the whispered jokes when they thought he couldn’t hear. The physical abuse, turning him into a punching bag...

And now, they’re being ’nice’. Because he wasn’t powerless anymore.

Hermes’ lip twitched upward. He didn’t snarl. He didn’t grit his teeth. Instead, he smiled back.

"Oh, it’s so good to see you again," Hermes said brightly to one of them, tilting his head just so. "You look... well. Have you been sleeping enough? The bags under your eyes say otherwise."

The man blinked, thrown off, before forcing another laugh.

Another woman waved at him. "Hermes, I almost didn’t recognize you. You’ve really changed."

Hermes widened his smile. "Oh, thank you. You too. I almost didn’t recognize you because of how your face had filled out. Did you get pregnant recently?"

"W-What!? No I didn’t—"

Hermes just smirked. "Must be a break up then. It’s alright, it’s perfectly normal to binge eat and lose yourself when that happens. And you’ve experienced it many times before, so I’m sure you’ll get through it. Stay strong~"

The words were dripping with venomous insincerity.

Ymir caught it. Out of the corner of Hermes’ eye, he saw the department head’s lips twitch, the faintest ghost of a suppressed laugh.

"Who the hell are you and where is the real Hermes?" Ymir murmured under his breath, amused despite himself.

Hermes winked at him. "I don’t know what you’re talking about, Mr. Glace. This is how I’ve always been... I just speak out what was in my mind for once."

He strutted past the cluster of fake smiles like he was gliding down a runway, each sarcastic barb another dagger tossed neatly over his shoulder.

***

Ymir’s office was colder than the hallway. Not just from his power seeping into the air, but from the atmosphere itself—immaculate, sterile, every book and folder aligned in perfect order. The only chaos was the scattered papers on his desk, and even those seemed weighed down by precision.

Ymir slid into his chair with the ease of habit, then reached for a file. "This is what we know."

Hermes leaned forward, the tension from earlier humming beneath his skin.

The folder was thick, full of stills, notes, surveillance reports. Ymir spread a few across the desk.

"Eirwyn was last spotted near a Rift." Ymir said, his voice low. "Outside the country. Which means..."

Hermes’ throat tightened. "He’s in the Void."

Ymir nodded grimly. "Yes."

He shifted the photos forward. Grainy camera stills, timestamped not long after the phony war. They showed Eirwyn, cloaked, speaking with black market dealers. Money exchanged. And then...

Adelivery. A massive container, human-sized.

Hermes’ eyes narrowed. "A cryogenic tank."

Ymir’s brows furrowed. "How did you—"

Hermes’s chest clenched. His mind flicked back to that damned system, the way it had spat out [Error 404: Information not found] every time he’d searched for Eirwyn. Apple’s voice in his head, suggesting maybe it meant Eirwyn had changed. Or died.

Unless...

Hermes’ hands gripped the edge of the desk. "He froze himself. With Cryoshift."

His voice was almost a whisper. "If he did it inside the Void, the system couldn’t trace him. He’d be... undetectable."

Ymir blinked, dumbfounded. "That’s insane. Why would anyone do that?"

Hermes shook his head, recalling that last confrontation.

"We don’t know anything much about his origins. He said he was grateful to live in a time without war. Without chaos. Maybe..." Hermes’ jaw clenched. "Maybe he wanted to preserve himself for a more ’peaceful’ time, since he thinks we have come to disturb that peace by revealing the SHIFT’s secret activities."

Ymir scoffed, leaning back. "Ridiculous. The world isn’t peaceful. Crime, corruption, exploitation—still here. And half the time, it’s the government spreading it."

His eyes flashed, cold with conviction. "To think that a veteran hero like him would cling to that illusion..."

He trailed off, biting his nails.

Hermes didn’t answer. His gaze had shifted from the papers to Ymir himself.

The man looked sharp, as always. But beneath the polish, there were cracks. His hair, once a cool silver, seemed almost brittle, the white strands brighter than Hermes remembered. His hands, as they shifted the papers, trembled faintly. His nails were chewed down, uneven, a few split and raw at the edges.

Hermes frowned. Without a word, he reached across the desk and took Ymir’s hand.

Ymir stiffened instantly, icy power pricking at the edges of his skin. "What are you—"

Hermes didn’t let go. A soft golden glow bloomed under his fingertips as he used Rewind. The damage was reversed. His nail beds smoothed and the cracks were sealed.

Ymir flinched at first, then went still. He watched silently as the glow faded and his hand was... whole again.

Hermes released him gently. "You’re biting yourself to pieces."

Ymir looked down, flexing his fingers. His cheeks colored faintly, but his voice was stiff. "...Thank you."

Hermes smirked. "Don’t get used to it. That’s the only manicure you’re getting from me."

A reluctant breath of laughter escaped Ymir’s nose. The moment hung, fragile, before he straightened and slid another document forward.

"Back to the matter at hand," Ymir said, regaining his edge. "If he’s in the Void, finding him won’t be easy. We’ll need an excuse to get there."

Hermes raised a brow. "Excuse?"

Ymir’s lips curved slightly, sharp as a blade. "Another act. The public already bought the last one, didn’t they? Cryoshift versus Magnarok."

Hermes’ brows rose. "You’re saying..."

"This time," Ymir said coolly, "Magni kidnaps me. Drags me into the Void. And you..."

His eyes locked onto Hermes.

"You’ll be the one to ’rescue’ me, giving you an excuse to dive into the Void with us."