Konrad's eyes shot awake, his form drifting slightly above the ground. his mind reeling from the events that had just transpired.

He was dead clearly… or he had died. It was surprising to Konrad initially he had thought he had an art, excited he squinted his eyes trying to feel the feeling of prior. When he tried to Reenact the events to replay the skill, however, nothing happened. Was someone else interfering with Sultan?

Not likely.

Sultan was someone who had received a very unique art he liked to call soul creation. The master of souls could not have an equal, let alone someone stronger. manipulation of souls was in essence life to lifeless things for Sultan. He could create souls from nothing, they only could follow orders, however. Unfortunately they could not fully think for themselves. An example would be lemonade, who would emotionlessly carry out an order.

Then what about him? Was he like lemonade? If so, maybe he was truly lifeless like she was. He did not feel void of emotion though. He could clearly feel uncomfortable, sad, angry, grateful, envy, happy. So what was he? Surprisingly he had ended up in thrombo highschool. The once vibrant and lively student body, now empty and eerily quiet.

He tried to call out, to scream, but there wasn't a soul in the school grounds. The moon glistened through the windows as Konrad realized the time. It was late at night or extremely early morning…

“So what ,why am I here?”

[cursed ai initiating connection to user]

[Error file path /dimension3/users/KonradGrant/art

not found in folder system/]

[Reading… ERROR]

He couldn't believe it. He wouldn't believe it. This had to be a dream, some sick, twisted nightmare conjured up by his subconscious. Konrad pinched himself, hoping to wake up, but the pain never came. Instead, he felt a cold, empty sensation, as if his entire being had been hollowed out.

[ERROR]

[ERROR]

[ERROR]

…

Konrad's thoughts raced, trying to make sense of his situation. However the voice continued to speak in repeat overwhelming his mind and stressing him out.

“STOP!!” He screamed. It worked. the voice went silent. But only for a brief moment.

[Source error detected: dimension3 file named dimension4 file, player does not exist in dimension 3]

[Error is resolving…]

A sudden shift in reality transpired as swirls and tares like paper gradually widened. Konrad was flustered and disoriented, the world around him was spinning. Despite being a spirit he felt nauseous.

“W-what's wrong!?” Konrad, suppressing the urge to vomit, attempted to make sense of what was going on.

Konrad's thoughts raced, trying to make sense of his situation. How had he ended up back at Thrombo High School, deserted and eerily silent under the moon's cold gaze? The error messages continued to flash in his mind, adding to his mounting frustration and confusion.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

[ERROR]

[ERROR]

[ERROR]

Without warning, the ground beneath his feet seemed to dissolve, and a blinding light enveloped him. Konrad's form was yanked violently, as if an hand made of some starry sky like smoke had reached out from the void and pulled him through a tear in reality itself. A whirlwind of colors and sounds that defied comprehension looped over and over again as Konrads ethereal body warped and stretched.

Then, just as suddenly as it began, the chaos stopped as he was excreted from the warped reality. Konrad found himself standing in the same hallway he had just left, or so it seemed. The moonlight still glistened through the windows, casting long shadows that danced across the floor. The silence was just as oppressive, the air just as still. But something felt different, an intangible shift in the atmosphere that set his nerves on edge.

He took a cautious step forward, his senses on high alert. "What just happened?" he muttered to himself, half expecting an answer from the empty corridor.

As he moved, he noticed subtle differences—the posters on the walls were slightly altered, the colors more faded, the text in a language he couldn't quite recognize. It was as if he had been transported to a mirror image of his reality, one that was eerily close yet distinctly foreign.

"Hello?" Konrad called out, his voice echoing through the deserted halls. There was no response, just the unsettling quiet that seemed to press in on him from all sides. He wandered from room to room, each one empty and untouched, as if frozen in time.

Hours seemed to slip by as he explored, the silence growing heavier with each passing moment. Konrad's anxiety gnawed at him, a constant, uneasy presence. The eerie stillness of the school was oppressive, making every creak of the floorboards and rustle of papers sound like a thunderclap.

Just as he was about to give up hope of finding anyone, the first light of dawn began to creep over the horizon. Konrad stopped, his breath catching as he watched the sky shift from the deep indigo of night to the soft blues and whites of early morning. The colors transformed gradually, blending into warmer oranges, pinks, and purples, casting a surreal glow over the empty halls.

The beauty of the sunrise was almost enough to distract him from his fear. Almost. He stepped closer to a window, placing a hand on the cool glass as he tried to steady his racing thoughts. The dawn's light brought no comfort, only a stark reminder of his isolation in this strange, twisted version of his world.

"What is this place?" he whispered to himself, the question hanging in the air. The eerie quiet of the school seemed to mock him, offering no answers. what was weirder was the sky. Konrad was no expert of atmospheric shifts, but shouldn't the sunrise begin with warm reds, pinks and oranges before shifting to blue? Weirdly enough the sunrise began light blue before shifting to an orange color.

As the light grew brighter, illuminating the hallway in a warm glow, Konrad couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. Konrad usually prided himself on a good sense of his surroundings, but twice in one day was abnormal even for him.

“Seems like we have a new student.” Konrad flipped his head around in shock. An old, raisin-like woman with a cane that seemed to barely hold up her collapsing center of gravity wobbled over to Konrad. she wore a surprisingly unique nun habit something uncommon in this era

He subconsciously took a step back. His mind reeled with questions, and at this point, he was about to pass out from the amount of stimulus to his brain.

“No need to be scared, seedling. You have been summoned, yes?”

Konrad paled slightly, unsure if he should respond to that question.

“I can see you’re a bit... unripe... to the situation, hohoho,” the old lady laughed as if having a wonderful tea party with some unknown visitor. Konrad certainly wasn’t about to let some weird old woman get closer.

So what else did Konrad do but run? He didn’t want to see that woman. For all he knew, she could be some warped reality witch or something. I mean, anything is possible now… So he ran, faster and faster.

“Hey i have a granny smith apple for yah. Want it?”

“Want some apple tarts they say its Tart-riffic”

“I think you would greatly appreciate a nice apple pie its to pie for!”

“LEAVE ME ALONE OLD HAG!!!!” Konrad screamed. No matter how far he ran the creepy old women never relented pursuit even quipping some cringy play on words

“Old…hag?... how DARE YOU!!!” the old women suddenly appeared in front of Konrad with godlike speed before his vision went black.