A few days had passed since the Broken Eclipse Order's attempt to kidnap Princess Arisa. Rumors of the abduction and the crimson-eyed shadow spread like wildfire.
Within days, everyone knew the name Dark, but no one knew exactly who he was.
Some feared him.
Others were curious.
And a few even began to admire the mysterious crimson-eyed shadow.
The attack led the academy to establish stricter protocols. No student was allowed to leave the institution late at night, and if the reason for leaving was justified, it had to be done under authorized supervision.
Classes continued as if nothing had happened.
But there was someone who was not at ease.
And the cause of this was a single student.
A student with abilities that didn't fit those of an ordinary person.
Classroom 1-A was in absolute silence, interrupted only by the pacing footsteps. Maerin walked back and forth, like a restless animal.
She wasn't thinking about the kidnapping.
She wasn't worried about the Academy's security.
Instead, her thoughts revolved around one person: Rei.
His performance in the test seemed suspicious to her. The orb's pressure didn't affect him as it should have. Level 8 could only be withstood by veteran professors like her.
Normally, he would have collapsed instantly under the pressure.
But he didn't.
It took him time to do so, and when he did, he didn't seem exhausted like the others; his fall was controlled and precise, as if he had calculated when to fall.
"You don't fool me," she whispered. "You fell because you wanted to."
But even if that were true, it told her nothing about Rei. His performance alone wasn't enough to discover who he truly was.
However, Maerin was clear about one thing:
This boy isn't normal... he just pretends to be.
Maerin looked out the window; a plan was already forming in her head.
Her pride prevented her from letting it go. The idea that a student could be at her level, or even surpass her, was irritating.
After all, she was Maerin "The Spellbreaker"; she had trained to get where she was. For someone to appear out of nowhere and effortlessly do what had taken her years to learn wounded her pride.
"Rei ArcDusk, your masks won't work on me."
She was determined to uncover the truth about this boy, even if it meant spending days observing his movements.
Tests, interrogations, spying on him.
No matter how, she would succeed.
Outside, the noise of students chatting, oblivious to Maerin's thoughts, approached the classroom.
Class was about to begin.
But for her, an investigation was starting.
An investigation she was willing to do anything to achieve her goal.
To know the truth.
"I'll find out who you really are, Rei," she said, determined.
She looked at the students entering. Her posture became professional, but her mind was fixed on her goal.
"I swear by my pride," she promised.
✦☾✦
It was recess, so the academy courtyard was filled with students from all years.
Most took the opportunity to take a break from the stress of class.
Others focused on training in the practice field, unwilling to fall behind the others.
While I preferred not to be bothered by anyone.
Professor Maerin's class had ended, presenting the new security measures.
Each student was given a PDA device, used to send messages to other students and professors.
It also has a system that allows us to receive evaluation notes and stay up-to-date with individual academic performances.
In case of emergencies, it can be used to call authorities or authorized combat personnel from the Academy.
But there was one detail that no one else noticed.
The device has a default option to display its location in real-time.
It's not just to keep us safe; they're making sure that if we leave the academy, they're the first to know.
This is a problem.
I was sitting in a tree, in a quiet spot away from the noise. I preferred the tranquility of being alone, which is why I chose this place.
In my hand, I held a book, but I wasn't actually reading it. I was using it to hide what I was doing.
In my other hand, my PDA device. I was trying to find a way to disable the option that showed my location.
It was a problem to solve.
I closed my eyes for a second, organizing my thoughts.
"I must fix this as soon as possible."
I'll do it later. When no one is watching.
And speaking of problems, a shadow suddenly covered me.
Looking up... it was Arisa.
Her hands were on her hips; her posture told me she was in her usual mood.
Her eyes were slightly narrowed, inspecting me as if searching for a missing piece in a puzzle.
"What are you doing here? Don't you have any friends?"
"I don't need them."
It was partly true; I don't need friends to fulfill my mission. But it's true that I haven't tried to socialize.
Doing so would mean exposure.
And that would be a bad move.
Arisa crossed her arms.
"And what exactly are you doing in this place?" she asked, though it sounded more like an interrogation.
I barely raised an eyebrow, considering her question ridiculous.
And now who does she think she is? My mom?
"Reading," I replied.
It wasn't true, but I couldn't reveal what I was doing.
She tapped her foot on the ground, a sign of impatience.
"Reading? What are you reading?"
She didn't seem interested in what I was actually reading; she was making sure I wasn't lying.
"Literary novels. I read them in my free time."
Her eyes narrowed further, searching for a sign that I was lying. But my expression remained calm, showing nothing to give me away.
"What an ugly face you have!" she said, annoyed at getting nothing.
"Then don't look at it."
Without her noticing, I hid the PDA I was trying to manipulate before she could see it.
That was close.
This time she wasn't so insistent.
I took out Liria's handkerchief, wiping my face, even though I wasn't sweating.
Sometimes I did it just to remember her.
To not forget our promise.
Arisa's eyes widened at the sight of the handkerchief.
"Th-That... that handkerchief..." she stammered. "Where did you get it?"
Shit.
It was too late when I realized my mistake.
Still, I remained calm.
"Someone... special gave it to me."
I averted my gaze for an instant. The word special weighed heavily, but it was the right one.
"Special? From whom? Your girlfriend?"
Then she shook her head.
"Don't change the subject," she told me, even though she had. "How do you have it?"
I sighed as I closed the book.
This was getting annoying.
"I already told you."
I wasn't going to give her any more answers, but I needed to find a way to escape.
Arisa kept looking at the handkerchief, unconvinced.
"But... it's identical to the one he had."
Talking about "him" again.
I was about to respond, but then she burst into laughter.
"Ha, ha, ha!" she laughed, incredulous. "I can't believe that for a moment I thought you were him. The handkerchief must be a coincidence, a worthless trinket."
Worthless...
My hand clenched tightly.
Anyone who had spoken like that about Liria would have had their mouth broken with a punch.
There was an almost imperceptible movement in my shadow, patiently waiting for the order to attack.
But, seeing the situation, I opted to remain silent. Saying anything would only increase her suspicions.
"Of course," I replied.
Arisa finished laughing and her attention returned to me.
"Still..."
She was about to say something more, but she was interrupted by the call of her friends coming from the other side of the courtyard.
"Arisa! We were looking for you! Come with us!"
How opportune.
I was lucky today.
Arisa gave me one last cold glare.
"What a waste of time," she said.
She turned and walked away with her head held high, as if having spoken to me had been a privilege for me.
I waited until she was far enough away to evaluate what had happened.
She suspects something, but she doesn't want to accept what it implies if it's true.
"I need to be more careful."
As long as she keeps thinking that way, there won't be any problems.
But this cannot happen again.
I touched the handkerchief one last time that day and sighed.
Don't mind her. She doesn't know what she's saying.
✦☾✦
In a shadowy corner of the Kingdom, where no one usually passed, a most macabre ritual was taking place.
A carefree young noble ventured into a darker-than-usual alley, confident that nothing would happen.
Behind him, shadows began to stir, stalking him closely. They waited for the perfect moment to pounce.
When he least expected it, he was surrounded by shadows.
It took them less than a second to subdue him. The noble cried for help, but no one heard him.
They dragged him against his will.
They took him to an abandoned warehouse, where a most macabre scene awaited him: candles illuminated the place, blood splattered on the floor as if it were decoration, and in the center of it all, a large pentagram with a drawing of a broken eclipse.
They tied the noble to the floor with mana chains, right in the center of the pentagram.
Figures surrounded the circle. Their hoods hid their identities, although even they didn't know if they still had them.
One of them lowered his hood, revealing his face.
His skin was pale, almost gray; his body was covered in dull white cracks; his gaze was lifeless with constricted pupils, and where his shadow should have been, there was nothing.
He raised his arms and began to conjure.
"From light and shadow... nothing will remain," he murmured.
"Break the light. Silence the shadow. Restore the void," the others accompanied him.
"Only in the void is the world complete!" they all shouted at the end.
A light illuminated the noble from head to toe, but it was not a light that reflected.
It was a light that absorbed.
A ritual of inverted light.
His mana was completely drained, leaving him as an empty vessel.
In an instant, the noble ceased to be human.
His skin turned gray like theirs, his eyes dimmed, white cracks erupted from his skin.
And his shadow was gone.
"Only in the void is the world complete..." he repeated, like a zombie.
That night, the Broken Eclipse Order added a new plaything to its ranks.
They believed they had been discreet.
But, from a rooftop, someone saw everything.
Dark watched from the top of the roof. Around him, the shadows seemed to bow in silence, like subjects before their king.
The city at his feet looked small... too fragile to understand who was watching over it.
He wasn't late; he saw the whole scene.
But he couldn't intervene.
He could only watch helplessly as the ritual unfolded.
"If I moved... everything would end," he whispered to nothingness. "My mission. My identity. Everything."
He had already exposed himself when he saved Princess Arisa from the kidnapping.
His name was etched throughout the kingdom. It wouldn't take long for them to connect the dots if he kept exposing himself like that.
"Sorry," he apologized to the noble, even though he couldn't hear him.
Again...
Again someone died and I couldn't do anything.
The shadows around him stirred uneasily, as if sharing his frustration.
Dark gritted his teeth.
"This won't happen again," he promised.
His identity had become a limitation to his mission. He could no longer operate without running the risk of being discovered, but he couldn't let this continue.
He wouldn't allow more lives to fall into the Order's hands.
He would find a solution to this problem, as he did with everything.
And he would do it as soon as possible. He wouldn't give them another second.
He looked back at the abandoned warehouse from the rooftop.
"Enjoy this moment... because it will be your last."
His eyes glowed a deep crimson for an instant, as if they had already dictated an execution.
Then... they returned to normal.
His hand instinctively reached for his sword, but he immediately pulled it away.
"Not yet."
Darkness enveloped him like a cloak.
And then he was gone.
He moved away from that horrible scene, blending with the shadows, but his presence seemed to linger, leaving a message for the Order.
What happened that night was a small victory for them.
But it won't happen a second time.
Because he will return for revenge.