I stood before a curtain wall, the dim light cast everything in an eerie haze.
Looking over my shoulder, I caught my reflection on the wet concrete, rippled and blurred.
I was at my father's office building—Grey Industries' private area.
Everything around me flickered in and out, moments of clarity melting into confusion, like snapshots of a dream. Then, without fully thinking, I moved toward one of the rooms: a computer chamber.
The second I stepped inside, I was struck by its state. The ceiling was shattered, computers lay strewn about, some still in place, rusted over like antiques.
Fear, awe, confusion—whatever gripped me, it held me frozen.
Just then, something cold clamped down on my arm.
My vision twisted, and I was slammed against the wall.
A monster stood before me— an "it."
Towering, skeletal, wrapped in the deepest shade of midnight black.
Its eyes: pure, unmarked white. Its fingers unnaturally long, tipped with dagger-like nails.
Before I could react, it picked me by the throat and threw me into the wall again.
Sprawled, paralyzed, I could only watch as it brought a claw to my sternum, pressing it down—hard—until its hand plunged into my stomach.
Blood. Blood—!
***
"Hunkh!" I gasped, my eyes snapping open.
Awake. Breathless.
My heart hammered in my chest, the pulse throbbin loud in my ears. Without thinking, I reached for the nightstand, grabbed the water bottle, and gulped it down in a frenzy.
Slowly, my breathing steadied, but the anxiety clung to me like a shadow.
The faint moonlight spilled through the picture window, casting a pale glow over my bare torso.
The hostel room was still shrouded in darkness, only the moon's light softly lit the edges.
Night hadn't given way to dawn yet. The ticking of the wall clock echoed in the silence—three in the morning.
Flashes. Faint images from the nightmare bled into the memory of my childhood, blurring what was real and what was just the dream.
"Shit..." I whispered hoarsely.
Sitting up on the edge of the bed, I grabbed the pill bottle of benzodiazepine on the nightstand.
Twisting it open, I swallowed all the tablets in quick succession.
A digital message flashed in my retina, followed by the nanites' monotone:
[Alert! Lethal dosage of depressant drugs detected!]
Calmly, I stood up, walking near the window.
I was looking at the sky; there were constellations and stars I had never seen before.
"Appraise it." I commanded softly.
[Command acknowledged. Initiating compound decomposition protocol. Benzodiazepine is being disassembled into core molecular components: chloro, methyl, phenyl, and related structures. Additional substances undergoing processing. System stabilization achieved. Substance successfully assimilated. Bio-synthesis reserves at 100%. Energy Core efficiency at 99.8%.]
Today is electives.
***
Aurora let out an exaggerated sigh. "What-ev-er... Anyway, have you made up your mind about the electives?"
Takahashi Aoi's response was sharp, "Yes. Thinking of joining a combat-related elective. Nothing else stood out."
The pair had just come from the A21 training grounds after their daily sessions with Instructor Aroghna, leaving them worn out. Now, they were on the way to section 15-A, where a list of electives awaited them at the registrar's office.
Aurora's footsteps matched Takahashi's, though her mind was elsewhere, eyes narrowed in thought.
Takahashi, hands shoved deep into his pockets, kept the same distant air about him. His usual intensity had faded, replaced with a cool detachment.
Aurora watched him out of the corner of her eye, her sleek hair slipping over the shoulder of her immaculate blazer—an appearance befitting her poised, regal look.
She pinched the bridge of her nose, brow furrowed.
This wasn't like him.
They'd already discussed joining either Magic topology or the Dungeon course. Takahashi's sudden 'disinterest' didn't sit right with her.
Something had changed.
"You've been off since sparring," Aurora noted, her voice carrying a slight edge. "This about losing? Is that why you're suddenly thinking combat electives?"
Takahashi flinched at her words, his calm mask slipping for just a moment. "What? No... That's not it." He tried to brush her off, though his tone was less steady than usual.
Aurora grinned, a knowing look in her eyes. "Sure, sure!" she teased lightly, though her gaze held him. She could see through the cracks.
Takahashi quickly turned his gaze, staring at the ground as if searching for a hole to crawl into.
To others, a defeat might not bother them as much. But for Takahashi, who had never tasted defeat before? That was a big deal—a bruise to his pride.
"Hey, mind if I join you two?" A new voice cut in the air before Takahashi could reply.
It was Sophia Bonaparte. Sophia too was a first-year student—a friend of Emily Reed, who was one of the top students of class A1. Being the top-ranked first-year students, it was only natural for the likes of Aurora, Takahashi and Emily to end up together.
"Oh, Sophie!" Aurora's tone brightened, her previous expression melting away as she greeted her. "Of course, are you also heading to the registrar?"
Takahashi merely nodded at Sophia Bonaparte.
"Yeah. I'm planning to join a combat elective," Sophia replied while swatting her hair away from her forehead.
Aurora raised an eyebrow. "You too? Why do you want to join a combat course? Even Takahashi was thinking the same thing. Don't we already get enough practice in training sessions?"
Sophia tilted her head, looking at Takahashi. "Is that so?"
The corridor to section 15-A was relatively quiet. The three of them walked together while making small talk. Electives were mandatory for every student.
It was then that Aurora spotted a figure approaching from the far end of the hallway.
Deathly pale skin was stark against the dim light. Dark hair and even darker eyes framed his sharp features, casting a shadow of discomfort over her senses.
She could still remember the strange electric pulse she had sensed coming off him during her training with Instructor Aroghna, only for it to vanish just as mysteriously. And that mocking laugh.
Noah strode right up to them, his steps deliberate.
"What?" Takahashi's voice was blunt, his brow raised in mild annoyance.
Aurora's eyes narrowed into a sharp glare, her displeasure palpable. She wished he would crawl away instead of bothering them. But Noah, unbothered, ignored her entirely. His gaze shifted past her, locking onto Sophia.
"Do you guys happen to know where the chemistry lab is?" His tone was casual, as if he were oblivious to the tension crackling in the air. "I'm kind of lost."
Sophia, sensing something amusing in the situation, tilted her head before replying, "Are you into alchemy or something?"
"No…" Noah's reply was flat.
Sophia shrugged. "Esoteric students are rare anyway. The chemistry lab is that way." She pointed down the hall.
"Thanks." Noah nodded, then turned and walked off without another word.
"It'd be best if you ignored that loser, Sophie," Aurora muttered, waving her hand dismissively as she gestured for them to keep moving.
Sophia blinked, caught off guard. "Why?"
"Haven't you heard?" Aurora shot back, her tone sharp with disbelief.
"Heard what?" Sophia asked, her confusion deepening.
Aurora's lips curled in disdain. "About that scandal?"
...
A short distance away, Noah heard every word, his brow furrowing.
'Those rumors are going to be hard to shake,' he thought with a sigh. Nano's enhanced auditory function made it all too easy for him to pick up their conversation, even as he walked away.
This was bad. The rumors had spread like wildfire, courtesy of Freya Fretel, who had taken it upon herself to inform others about the MMS scandal from their past.
The details of the scandal were blurred in his mind, tangled with the fragmented memories of the other Noah Grey.
He exhaled slowly. His feet finally came to a stop in front of a door.
A-10 Chemistry Lab.
This place… it was where everything would change. His plans, his future—it all started here. Steeling himself, Noah took a deep breath and stepped inside.