That Night…
Silence enveloped everything around him.
No sound remained but the distant murmur of water, flowing unseen between hidden rocks.
Tree branches swayed gently, as if whispering to one another, while a cold wind passed without urgency.
He stood there—at the edge of a cliff—overlooking a vast sea of dense, undulating treetops.
The sky was overcast, yet no rain fell.
And the silence… was heavy. Suffocating.
A silver-haired man stood before him.
His face was indistinct, blurred, as though woven from mist itself.
As Raymond stepped forward, one careful step after another, the man's voice reached him from afar.
"How long… has it been… since we last… met?"
The familiar sound made Raymond's heart race, tightening painfully in his chest.
Though the words were fragmented—
though his mind failed to grasp their meaning—
his soul understood.
"Ah… not yet… you are not ready…
When the time is right… come here…"
The voice echoed through the emptiness, a whisper that seemed to pierce space itself.
Before Raymond could speak—
before he could even attempt to reach him—
the ground beneath his feet cracked open without warning.
Stones broke loose, plunging into the abyss below.
Yet he did not fall.
He awoke.
Raymond exhaled heavily as he stared at the ceiling of his room.
The sound of wind still lingered in his ears—it had not been an illusion.
It felt like a memory… from a place he did not recall ever visiting.
(Why does that place feel… so familiar?)
The dim darkness of the room remained undisturbed.
The air was still, and the steady sound of Lucas's breathing confirmed that everyone else was still asleep.
The dream was unclear, yet it was no ordinary nightmare.
Those fragmented words… the cliff… the wind… that voice that felt as though it knew him—
something about it felt far too real.
He rose quietly, careful not to make a sound, and dressed in the academy's uniform.
Black fabric traced with blue embroidery along the cuffs and hems, reinforced by dark belts wrapped around his trousers and arms—simple in design, yet striking.
Paired with knee-high black leather boots, it resembled military attire more than a student's uniform.
Due to the morning chill, he added a navy coat and matching gloves before leaving the room.
The corridors were nearly empty.
Wall lamps glowed faintly.
Leaves outside were damp with morning dew, and thick fog swallowed the central courtyard.
Raymond sat on a wooden bench, fingers interlaced, his mind drifting as he gazed at the sky—slowly shifting from pre-dawn darkness to the pale blue of early sunrise.
(It feels like I've seen that place before… but when?
Is it connected to the missing fragments of my memory?
Or is it something else entirely?
This feeling makes no sense unless it has a cause…
Since coming here, I've only grown more confused.
Why was my brother, Mikail, so insistent that I enroll in this academy?
He's been acting strangely lately as well…
He must be planning something.)
The sound of soft footsteps approaching pulled him from his thoughts.
A staff member passed by, heading toward the main notice board with a stack of papers in hand.
He pinned one of them up, then left without a glance behind.
Raymond stood and approached quietly. His eyes scanned the bold headline at the top:
"Field Examination for New Students – Southern Forest – 10:00 AM"
He stared at it for a moment before murmuring under his breath,
"…A forest? Was there one this close to the capital?"
Something tightened in his chest—a fleeting sensation, as if something had been waiting for him there for a very long time.
"I must be losing my mind…"
He turned away, wandering the grounds in an attempt to calm his thoughts.