June 8

4:59 am

I woke up even before the alarm clock started to ring. I sat up on my bed and waited…

There! As soon as it rang my hand flashed to the side, pressing the button on top of the clock to stop its ringing. I think I did that in 0.74 second. It’s a new record.

My sleepwear was quickly changed into a pair of sweatpants and a tanktop. I then left the apartment and walked to the nearby park. It was just a ten minute walk.

When I arrived, I performed stretches and calisthenics. Then I left the park to follow my usual jogging route around the residential district and back to the park. After some cooling down stretches, I returned back to the apartment.

This was my usual morning routine. There was a slight difference for today, though.

As soon as I got back, I heated the leftover food from last night, then took a bath to wash off the sweat. I then changed to my school uniform. That’s right…

Today was my first day in high school.

After breakfast, it was almost seven. Today’s first period, which was Homeroom, starts at eight. I quickly packed my bag with the heated lunchbox I prepared last night, and some notebooks.

I made sure the apartment was locked properly and left on a bike. The school was on the other side of town and would take me about forty minutes to get there if I rode my bike leisurely. Since, there was still enough time, I did so.

I enjoyed the view as I made my way to school. Along the way, I saw some familiar faces within the neighborhood and greeted them properly. As I left the residential district, I crossed a bridge over a river. After that would be a second residential district, but the houses were obviously larger than those from where I came.

People living here were mostly those who belong on the richer side of society. I’m not saying that we, on the other side of the bridge, were poor. A safer description would be that this side was more developed compared to ours.

Soon, the new trade district came into view. Most of the shops were still closed, but the employees were already arriving one by one. It won’t be long before this area start bustling with activity.

Obviously, the old trade district was located on ‘our’ side, but it had already been demoted to a simple market place. That was because the merchants who used to setup their shops here had moved to the new trade district. The reason is simple. They could make more profit on the ‘richer’ side of town.

Following the road that borders the new trade district and the second residential district would lead to a wide and peaceful park. Past that park was a hill. Atop that hill was my new school, St. John’s Private Academy. Actually, the park was also owned by the school and was known as St John’s Free Park.

I could already see many figures walking on the hill road. Since most of the students come from the nearby residential district, they don’t need to ride a bike like me or any other sort of vehicle. Unless your ride is an expensive car, you’d be associated with people of the old residential district… which connotes that you’re not as rich as them. In simpler terms, they’re calling you poor.

Well, that’s what my father said. He was a graduate of St. John’s Private Academy and experiences this stuff first hand. Many years have passed since then, and things may have changed… or not.

I could feel some glances toward me, but I ignored them. I pedaled my bike up the steep hill road with no difficulty at all. This was the result of my daily training.

St. John’s Private Academy was surrounded by a wall with beautiful murals and ornaments. There are two gates, one on the front which was where the hill road leads to, and a gate at the back with a small dirt road to the forest area behind the hill. The forest area was used for camping and other extra-curricular activities. There was even a small lake further in the forest.

That was according to the brochure I read when I enrolled. I still haven’t experienced going there, though.

I lived in a different city with my mother and father before this past summer. After my middle school graduation, they received a job contract offer from their work place which required them to go abroad. The pay was way better than their regular salary, and since it was a rare opportunity, they decided to go with it. I was then told to live here in my father’s hometown. It was quite irresponsible of them, but I have no complaints.

During the summer, I quickly acclimated to this town and finished enrollment procedures. It was pretty smooth-sailing even without the assistance of my parents. I hope they’re safe wherever they were right now.

The academy had a parking lot behind the faculty and staff building, including the bicycle rack. I first stopped after passing through the front gate to admire the front view of my new school. I already did this during the enrollment, but it doesn’t hurt to do the same. This is my first day of high school after all. I should live through it to the fullest and make it a memorable day of my life… or something.

I brought the bike and chained it to the bicycle rack. There were already others there. There were two racks and each could accommodate up to 20 bikes. Only the first rack was occupied, and there were six bikes in total including mine. I guess some of them came early because they didn’t want to be seen riding a bike to school. Father said he did the same after realizing that he was being looked down. I say, he could just ignore what others think, but people have their own ways of thinking.

My classroom was on the first floor of the academic building, which was opposite of the faculty and staff building. There were six classes per year level and each class can hold up to thirty students for a total of 180 students per year level. The first years were on the first floor, second years on the second, and third years on the third floor.

I was assigned in Class 1-F. Being in the F class does not mean one’s grades are poor. It was said that the classroom assignments for first years were random.

I opened the door and nonchalantly entered. Many gazes landed on me, but then quickly lost interest and looked away.

Almost all the students were here already. Most of them seemed to know each other and were chatting among themselves. I looked up at the clock above the blackboard. It was five minutes before eight.

The few vacant seats available were at the front and back row. I don’t want to grab too much attention, so I chose a sit at the back.

Soon, a few more students arrived and occupied the remaining vacant seats. The bell rang and a female teacher promptly entered the classroom right on time and the students who were still standing and talking to other students immediately returned to their seats.

“Good morning, class. My name is Ms. Evaline Villagracia. You can call me, Ms. Val,” she introduced herself while writing her name on the chalkboard with a neat and steady penmanship. “I will be your homeroom teacher. I also teach English and History.”

“Now, then. There will be a Freshmen welcoming ceremony in the gymnasium at 8:30, so it would be best for us to proceed there right now. You can leave your things here. The room will be locked properly, so don’t worry.” As she said that, she showed a set of keys which she took out from her skirt pocket.

With her instructions, we left the room and proceeded to the gymnasium. It was at the rearmost area of the school, along with a sports track and a football field.

The gymnasium was huge. It had two basketball courts and two volleyball courts. All around were rising benches. On the opposite of the entrance was a stage with a podium. Neatly arranged were plastic chairs set in three groups of 10 columns by 18 each, obviously to accommodate the 180 students per year level. On every three rows of each group was an extra seat for the homeroom teacher.

Since we were the F class, we occupied the last three rows on the left group. I was on the rightmost seat on the last row. We were also the last to arrive among the first years. Soon, the second years arrived and occupied the center group, followed by the third years on the right group. A second year female student on the opposite side of the aisle waved a greeting at me as she saw me. I smiled politely and greeted back.

Seeing this many students wearing the same clothes was a bit overwhelming. The only difference was the color of our neckties: green for freshmen, red for juniors, and blue for seniors. Back in my middle school, there was only one class per year level with 15 students each, and there was no uniform. Well, it was a small and simple school after all. I was enrolled there because the school principal was my mother’s friend.

At 8:30, the program started with a short prayer, then the singing of the national anthem followed by the school anthem. A short opening speech was given by the vice-principal, then introduced the principal who then gave a very long and boring speech. As expected, principals excel in this skill. I could see some homeroom teachers scolding their students whose heads were already nodding due to sleepiness.

The program ended with a performance from the light music club.

It was around 10:30 when we returned to the classroom. It seems like we won’t be having any formal class for the rest of the morning. We introduced ourselves and reorganized our sitting arrangements by drawing lots. I ended up on a seat by the window on the third row. Cleaning schedules were assigned, then our class schedule and a list of clubs were handed out to us. Joining a club was strictly required and was even graded.

By 11:30, we were finally allowed by Ms. Val to leave the room. She was very strict on giving out instructions.

I joined the crowd and went to the school cafeteria. Eating in the classroom was allowed, so I plan to eat there. I went to the cafeteria to buy a drink as well as to have a look. As I checked the meal costs, I decided to bring my own lunch to reduce expenses. With my parents away, I’m living on a set allowance after all. Preparing my own food is definitely less expensive than eating in the cafeteria.

On a vending machine, I bought a box of milk and a bottle of water, then returned to the room. I was alone. I guess I was the only one who brought lunch on the first day of school. Thinking about it, normally, one would eat at the cafeteria on the first day. I sighed as I took out the lunchbox from my bag and sat down.

Before I could start digging in, a female student entered the room while carrying a small plastic bag. She was my seatmate. I think her name was Stephanie Valdez.

She had straight hair, long enough to touch her shoulders, with her bangs reaching past her brows. She wore a pair of purple thick-rimmed glasses. There was also a visible mole below the right corner of her mouth. A beauty mark.

“Hi,” she said as she sat down on her seat while smiling awkwardly. I replied with a “Hello” and the conversation did not progress past that. She took out three round breads from the plastic bag and a bottle of soda. The bread wrap was labeled “Monggo Bread.” One of those was the size of my hand outstretched.

I decided to stop looking at her and focused on my food. It was a healthy set of rice, meat, and vegetables. Add the boxed milk I bought earlier, and it’s a perfect set!

While I was halfway through my lunch, I took a glance beside me and almost choked. There sat a girl nonchalantly taking small sips from the bottle of soda. On her desk were three neatly folded plastic wraps. Despite her meek appearance, she’s actually quite the eater.

When she saw me looking at her and the plastic wraps, she lowered her head and tried to hide her eyes with her bangs. She’s actually conscious of her eating habit! I mumbled an apology and focused on eating.

It was one in the afternoon when the bell rung, signaling the end of lunch break. The next three periods passed by uneventfully, with just the teachers introducing themselves and the required subject-related materials which we will need for the rest of the school year.

Finally, classes ended. My cleaning duty was on Saturdays. With nothing left to do, I decided to go home today. Before I left, I saw a set of keys attached to a cute cartoon character accessory on Stephanie’s chair. Seems like she dropped it before she left. She looked like she was in a hurry to leave earlier and did not notice.

As I arrived at the bicycle rack, I saw another figure already there. She looked like she was panicking as she dug her hands into her pockets, looking for something. I quickly made my way to her and jingled the keys, asking, “Are you looking for this?”

She turned around and our eyes met. Her eyes were already moist and her brows were scrunched up. She looked like she was about to cry. Then, her eyes moved on to the keys that I was dangling in front of her.

“U…” she groaned.

“Uh?”

“UWAAAA!” she started bawling like a kid. It took a few minutes before she calmed down. Luckily, no one noticed the commotion, even the teachers at the nearby faculty building.

“Th-thank you… *sniff*… I thought… I lost it,” she said as she wiped her tears. I watched her as she took the keys and used it to unlock the chain on her bike.

“Even if you lost it, it should still be within the campus grounds, right?” I asked as I unlocked my own bike.

She shook her head, her straight hair swaying cutely with her movements. She then told me of the bullying she experienced in middle school. Most of her stuff would always end up taken and hidden by other students. I asked her why she was bullied, but she didn’t know the exact reason, and that things just happened that way. Before she knew it, it had developed out of control.

As I was about to leave, I noticed that she just stood there by the bicycle rack, as if waiting for something.

“Not going home yet?” I asked, looking back at her.

She shook her head and answered weakly, “When they’re all gone…”

I see. She was afraid of being seen by the other students riding a bike home. She could wait for all the students to leave, but if she did, it would take her much longer before she could get home. That was too much time lost and wasted.

“Come on,” I insisted as I went back to her and tried pulling her along.

“I-I can’t.”

“Just ride near me, there’s nothing to worry about,” I said with the gentlest tone I could as I looked her in the eye. In the end she lowered her head, hiding her eyes beneath her hair while whispering an “OK.”

“Don’t mind them,” I told her as we made our way past the gate. When I looked at her, she was staring hard at the road with her brows scrunched up in concentration. I couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.

She didn’t notice my laughter as we rode down the hill. Indeed, many of the students were looking at us, and most of them were demeaning stares. When we finally reached past the park, I asked, “Do you live in the old residential district, too?”

“Yes,” she answered quietly. “You?”

“Yep. I live alone in an apartment.”

“I’m with my parents.”

“That’s good.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Haha! Why are you apologizing?”

We made small talk as we rode through the new trade district and residential district. After passing through the bridge, we slowed down to a halt.

“I live in this direction,” she said pointing down the road opposite of mine.

“See you tomorrow, then,” I said while waving my hand.

“Ah! Wait!” she suddenly called out.

“Hmm?”

“I… uh… didn’t hear your name earlier…” she mumbled with a “sorry.”

I laughed aloud and answered, “Vincent Palma. You can call me Vince.”

“I’m Stephanie Valdez.”

“I know.”

“…You can call me Steph…”

With a blushing face, she pedaled her bike down the road, and we went our separate ways for today.

Steph reminded me of a certain girl I knew in the past. They don’t really look alike, and their personalities were like the difference between heaven and earth. Steph was a timid girl who was bullied while the girl I knew was a confident one and was more likely to bully others. In fact, I experienced being bullied by her a few times before.

It’s their blushing face. The way they act when they were embarrassed were similar.

The thought brought a smile to my face, and I continued to reminisce in the past. Before I knew it, I was already back in my apartment.

June 10

11:06 am

Today was Wednesday and it was now lunchtime. I was currently in the cafeteria to buy drinks for lunch. Steph and I had made an agreement yesterday to prepare our own lunch and eat together in the classroom. As usual, I bought a box of milk and a bottle of water. One bottle of soda was added for Steph.

This was already the third day of school, and even though I could ignore it, the feeling of being alienated from others was present. It was not like the other students were avoiding me. There was just no effort to initiate any sort of conversation or interaction other than necessary. Unless I make a move of my own to talk to them, it felt like they were treating me like air.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Steph’s situation was slightly worse. Some of her classmates from middle school that bullied her were also in this school. Fortunately, none of them were in our class. She had encountered them yesterday during the break between first and second period when she went to the ladies’ room, and since then, Steph felt an aversion to leaving the classroom during breaks.

And that was what led to the proposal of preparing lunchboxes and eating in the classroom.

As I was about to leave the cafeteria, a male student suddenly blocked my path. He wore a green tie, so he was also first year. I heard some small chatter behind him and I looked over his shoulder. There was a table occupied by five other students, three females and two males. Including the student who blocked my path, their group was a perfect fifty-fifty in gender ratio.

I looked back at the one in front of me and observed his features. He was slightly taller than me, about five feet and nine inches. Even through his uniform, one could tell that he had a well-developed body. With his slightly muscular build, it wouldn’t be surprising if one were told that he was a member of a varsity team. His face had well-define features despite being on the average side. His hair was long enough to be tied into a short pony tail. His eyes were sharp and were as if it was looking down on everything around him.

“Are you four-eye’s boyfriend?” he suddenly asked.

“Four eyes?” I’m not sure I understood who he was referring to, but I had an idea. I asked just to be sure.

“I’m talking about that gloomy girl you’re hanging around with!” He suddenly raised his voice, grabbing the attention of other students in the nearby tables.

“Oh, you mean Stephanie? Certainly, I am her friend, but we’re not close enough to be warranted as her boyfriend.” I answered in as calm a tone I could to avoid fueling this guy’s unpredictable temper.

“Oh really? Seems like from what I’ve heard, you were seen going home together since the other day, and were also acting lovey-dovey in class the whole day yesterday.” He turned to look at his friends who then started snickering.

“We’re friends.” I made that point firmly.

“I bet you took her home every night and had some kinky fun in your room! Hah!” The table behind him laughed and made lecherous gazes.

I furrowed my brows. Why do these people do things like this? Do they enjoy humiliating and tormenting others so much? What do they got from such acts?

I looked around and saw other students just staring at the commotion. Not a single one of them was willing to help defuse the situation.

“So, how was it, huh?” he asked while leaning his face closer to mine. “Was she good? Was she tight? Did she moan, ‘do it inside!’ while hugging you with her legs?” The vulgar words were heard by everyone around. Some of them blushed in embarrassment, while others were flushed in excitement.

Anger swelled inside me, but I managed to hold it down. Nothing could be solved by relying on violence.

I walked forward and tried to squeeze my way beside the vulgar student, but he had no intentions to let me through. Once again blocking my path, he leaned even closer and said, “In fact, I wanted to do her long ago, but I just never had the opportunity. Now that you broke her in, ahh… she isn’t worth much anymore,” with a disappointed voice.

Something snapped inside me. With my freehand, I placed it on his shoulder to push him away. He resisted with his muscular body, but before he could fully react, my foot had already made its way behind his.

With my hand pushing him backward, and my foot making him lose his balance, he fell straight on the table behind him where his friends were sitting. I grabbed his shirt to reduce the impact of the fall, but it caused the buttons to pop instead. He was heavier than I thought.

“Sorry, you were blocking the way,” I said as I walked away as if nothing happened.

“YOU FUCKER!” he shouted as he stood back up. His uniform was stained with soup and drinks.

I ignored him and left the cafeteria to return to the classroom. As I arrived, I saw Steph patiently waiting in her seat, her food still untouched. The sight warmed my heart and cooled my mind.

“You could have eaten before me,” I said as I entered the room. She only shook her head adorably and smiled.

By the end of fourth period, the teacher told me to go to the guidance office in the faculty building. I did as told and quickly found my way to the said office. When I knocked, a soft voice said, “You may come in,” from the inside.

Inside the guidance office was a medium-sized room with three comfortable-looking sofas. Each were facing one side of a glass table. There was one male student with a pale face sitting by the table while writing something on a logbook. His tie was blue, a senior student.

“Vincent Palma?” the soft voice asked coming from the side. There in a corner of the room was a petite woman sitting behind an office desk. On the desk was a nameplate: Ms. Jasmin Ludre, Guidance Counselor.

“Yes,” I answered as I approached.

“Please, take a seat,” she answered while gesturing towards a seat in front of her desk. I did as told and sat while facing her.

“Do you know why you were told to come here?” she asked.

“I may have an idea, but I’m not sure if it’s the exact reason.”

“May I hear what you think it is?”

“The incident in the cafeteria?”

“Exactly. It seems like you have an awareness of your actions at least. A group of first year students earlier reported of an incident involving unreasonable violence towards one of their peers. That said peer fortunately only suffered a few minor scrapes.”

I kept silent and listened. I have a feeling that things have become a little bit troublesome.

“Unluckily for you, that student was the son of a highly regarded family donating for the school. Although they can not directly influence your stay and study here, but their opinions could affect how some of the faculty would treat you. Do you understand what I want to say?”

I nodded in understanding.

“That’s good. I, unlike them, do not want such influence to hinder a student’s development under my watch. That was why I called you here. I want to hear your side of the matter.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. The environment of this school was indeed biased against those who did not belong in the ‘rich’ circle. At least, there was one who treated students equally.

I told her everything that had happened, including the exact words that were exchanged. I admitted that I was wrong in pushing him down, but at that moment, I was angered by his conduct.

The conversation didn’t last long and she let me off a minute before the bell rang for fifth period. On my way out of the office, I noticed the senior student watching me intently. When our eyes met, he only nodded his head slightly and I did the same in acknowledgment. For some reason, I felt a strange vibe coming from him, but I couldn’t exactly put it into words.

June 13

1:42 pm

The incident from three days ago had faded away like smoke in the air, but I could still feel its remnants of its course lingering. The teachers seemed to be watching my every move, as if they were afraid that I would burst into a fit of violence any moment. It seemed like rumors had been spreading that despite my calm and quiet appearance, I was actually a wolf in sheep’s clothing, a violent person pretending to be not. The fact that I live in the old residential district furthered the ‘credibility’ of the rumor.

I had told Steph to make other friends in the class. The rumors circling me would just worsen her standing in the student populace, especially with the rumor that she was my girlfriend, and that we had been doing the act. I advised her to keep her distance a bit, but she was unwilling. She had grown attached to me this past week.

Today was Saturday and classes were only for the three morning periods. Ms. Val visited our class after third period and told us to stay for the afternoon and visit the clubs. Although it was not compulsory, almost everyone in the class decided to stay and roam around in the school for the entire afternoon.

Right now, we’re inside a small room inside the extra-curricular activities building. There were four people present, Steph and I, another first year student, and a second year student.

“Let’s wait for the others,” she said after dragging us inside the room.

Initially, Steph and I joined the crowd of students and observed demonstrations from different clubs. Suddenly, from out of nowhere, Steph got pulled by an unknown student. She was unable to resist and dragged me along. We then found ourselves in this room.

The door opened and three people came in. One of them was a male senior with a pale face. I remembered him immediately from the guidance office. Trailing behind him was a female junior student and freshman.

“Hi, pres!” the second year student that dragged us here greeted him with a flippant tone. “Look, I fished three fresh ones!”

“Damnit…” the second year latecomer grumbled as she told the female freshman behind her to take a seat.

Everyone finally took a seat around the table. Four freshmen, two males and two females, sat on one side of the table. On the other side were the two female juniors and the pale-faced male senior sitting between them.

“Welcome to SPRC, or the Special Phenomenon Research Club,” the pale-face senior said with a wry smile. The two juniors beside him were nodding with wide smiles. This sight felt slightly comedic.

And also, Special Phenomenon Research Club?

“I am the club president, Ramon Regilla. A student of class 3-A.” The pale-faced senior introduced himself.

“You’re too stiff, pres. I’m the secretary, Zarina Parcon of 2-C.” The junior who brought us here was the second to introduce herself.

“Quincy Lopez, also 2-C. Treasurer.” The last one introduced herself.

The situation developed too fast and I was still a bit confused. I looked at the two beside me and surely, they were also confused. The female first year that was last to arrive had no reaction.

“Oh, don’t you know it’s proper manners to introduce yourselves after the other party name themselves?” asked Zarina.

“Don’t pressure them, Zarina,” Ramon said with a slightly scolding tone. He then look at us three and smiled warmly. “I’m sure Zarina dragged you here without asking for your opinion first. I’m apologizing on her behalf. You may leave whenever you want.”

“Oy, pres! Don’t tell them that! Don’t waste my efforts on bringing them here!”

“Uh, we don’t really mind,” I said to break the ice. “My name is Vincent Palma.”

“M-My name is Stephanie Valdez.” Steph followed suit.

“Joshua Ramirez.”

“Queenie Lopez.” Looking at her, she did looked similar to the female junior that brought her here. Even their names were similar.

“Yep, she’s my sister,” Quincy said as if reading our thoughts.

“Now, that introductions are done, I would like to ask, would you join our club?” Ramon asked while looking at us one by one.

We all fell silent as we contemplate on how to respond. I still don’t know what the objectives of this club was, so I could not really make a decision at this instant. Originally, I planned on joining a sports-related club, but if Steph decided to join here, I may as well. It doesn’t hurt to have someone I already know in the same club I am in.

I decided to probe the club for now.

“Before I make a decision, may I ask a question?” I asked.

“Of course,” Ramon replied.

“What’s the goal of this club?”

As Ramon opened his mouth to answer, Zarina overtook him with her loud voice.

“We’re here to research Special Phenomenons!”

Quincy palmed her face. I looked to the sides and found Steph and Joshua with dumbfounded faces, and Queenie shaking her head. Ramon only had a wry smile.

“The Special Phenomenon Research Club aims to undermine the truth behind strange occurrences and phenomena like alien sightings, UMAs and UFOs, and other phenomena that were deemed as unexplainable using conventional means,” he stated simply.

So it’s basically the occult research club.

I looked at Steph and she seemed to be interested.

“Do you want to join?” I asked her.

“Eh… I’m not sure,” she answered hesitatingly.

“Don’t worry about joining right now. You could opt for a one-week trial membership to get the hang of things, then decide afterward if you want to join as an official member.” Ramon threw a lifeline.

“I guess we’ll take that trial membership, then decide later,” I said. Steph nodded beside me.

"I’m joining,” Queenie said. Her older sister, Quincy, smiled lightly.

“I-I’m joining, too!” Joshua said while stealing glances at Queenie. It was obvious that he had a crush on her.

We exchanged contact information afterward. Queenie and Joshua stayed, while Steph and I decided to tour around the other clubrooms for the rest of the afternoon.

June 14

12:09 am

I received a text message in the middle of the night. It came from the Special Phenomenon Research Club president.

“Come to the Free Park for club activities.” That was the message. It was short and concise. Still, club activities in the middle of the night? Well, considering the nature of the club, I guess this was understandable.

I washed my face and quickly changed into simple outdoor clothes. I wrapped a scarf around my neck, a minor protection against the cold night air.

On the way, I expected to meet up with Steph on the road, but it seemed like she either left earlier than me or had not yet left. Since I didn’t contact her, it would be too presumptuous of me to think she would wait for me somewhere down the road if the case was the former.

This city was really quiet and dark at night. The streetlights were dim and flickering. The residential districts were eerily silent. Even the outer zone of the trade district was unexpectedly devoid of life. I heard that the previous all-night shops had moved deeper into the trade district to avoid disturbing the nearby residences.

I pedaled faster than usual to warm my body from the cold night. After nearly thirty minutes, I arrived at St. John’s Free Park. There were no one else present. It seemed like I was the first to arrive.

I waited for a few minutes. It was now a little bit past one. Suddenly, I heard the sound of footsteps behind.

Turning around to the direction of the sound, there a shadowy figure was approaching with steady steps. The figure came from the direction of the residential district.

Slowly, it raised its hand, and a bright glow erupted from it, lighting a familiar pale face. It was the club president.

I thought to greet him, but the sound got caught in my throat. A strange pressure was looming over me. Slowly, the president walked step by step and stopped when he was 10 meters away. That was when I finally noticed a second glow coming from his other hand. It was an immaterial light exuding a strange presence.

He raised the hand holding that light toward me and said, “Can you see this?”

The light did not cast any shadows. Although it was glowing, the area around was not lit. It was indeed out of the ordinary.

“Yes,” I answered honestly.

“As I expected,” Ramon said as he sighed in relief. “It seems like you have the potential.” The light disappeared as he lowered his hand. Then, with a warm smile, he asked, “Would you be my disciple?”

With those words, a torrent of memories flashed before me.

Harsh training with different weapons and styles.

Learning different methods to efficiently kill an enemy.

Learning strategies to command an army.

After graduating from the harsh and painful training, I met her.

“Would you be my disciple?” she asked. She was a half-elf. Her name was Tu’eri Goldgriffin, the Court Mage of Hiera Castle.

She was my teacher, my friend, and she also became my lover.

We fought the demon king and defeated him, but I failed to make sure that he died. He made a final desperate act to destroy everything in his death.

At the end, to save her, I made a promise.

“I swear to return, so wait for me.”

A promise that may never be fulfilled.