Edwin Lunar Chapter 76: The Red Box Awakens

Read chapter 76 of Edwin Lunar by MananTayal on NovelPedia.

The academy did not sleep that night. Security drones patrolled every corridor. Faculty members rushed between departments. Archive Sector 7 remained completely sealed. And for the first time in years, Headmaster Humming had personally taken control of academy security. Something was wrong. Everyone could feel it. Nobody knew why. Edwin stood near the large window of Orion Dormitory, staring at the illuminated academy grounds below. The events of the day replayed repeatedly in his mind. The shadow in the archives. The forged records. Wingard's journal. And most importantly— Humming's reaction. Edwin had never seen the old headmaster look shocked before. Never. Not even during the Final Expanse Crisis. Not even when reality itself nearly collapsed. Yet a few pages from Wingard's journal had shaken him completely. That alone was terrifying. A knock came from the door. Before Edwin could answer, Carl walked in carrying several food containers. "Emergency meeting." He placed them on the table. "Emergency food." Minutes later Iris and Lucien arrived. The four members of Orion gathered around the table. Just like old times. Except this time there was no mission briefing. No professor waiting for them. No official assignment. Only questions. Iris immediately activated her tablet. The room filled with holographic documents. Historical records. Military reports. Academy archives. Every file she had collected over the last few days. "The deeper I dig," Iris said, "the worse it gets." Edwin folded his arms. "How bad?" She pointed toward several floating records. "These are official reports from the Great War." Another group appeared. "These are copies stored in academy archives." A third group appeared. "These were recovered from Dominion military servers." Carl looked confused. "They all look the same." "They shouldn't." Iris enlarged the documents. Several dates immediately became visible. Then names. Locations. Mission reports. Edwin's eyes widened. Because they weren't identical. Not even close. One report claimed Groader was responsible for the destruction of an Orion fleet. Another placed him on a completely different world on the same day. A third report listed him as missing. A fourth listed him as commanding a mission. Lucien's expression darkened. "Impossible." "Exactly." Iris nodded. "Someone altered history." The room fell silent. Because saying it aloud made it real. History itself had been manipulated. Edwin looked toward Wingard's journal resting on the desk. His father had known. Decades ago. He had discovered the same contradictions. And whatever he found had frightened him enough to investigate secretly. The question was why. Who would have the power to alter records across an entire galaxy? Suddenly— The ring on Edwin's finger pulsed. Once. Then again. Stronger. Everyone noticed. Carl pointed. "Uh..." The silver ring emitted faint golden light. The same light that appeared whenever something connected to Wingard was nearby. Edwin stood immediately. The feeling was familiar. A warning. A signal. A reaction. Then the light vanished. "What was that?" Iris asked. Edwin slowly shook his head. "I don't know." But deep down, he wasn't convinced. Because the direction of the pulse seemed very specific. Very deliberate. As if something beneath the academy had called to it. Far below. Deep underground. The Red Box glowed. Hidden within Humming's secret vault, crimson light spread across its surface. Ancient symbols awakened one by one. The air itself trembled. The box had remained silent for decades. For generations. Yet now the awakening continued. Growing stronger every day. Another lock clicked open. The sound echoed through the chamber. Headmaster Humming stood alone before the pedestal. His hands were clasped behind his back. His expression remained unreadable. Yet inside, his thoughts were anything but calm. He had spent years protecting the box. Years ensuring nobody opened it. Years following a promise made long ago. A p