Everything was getting enveloped in darkness; some stars were visible, shining like tiny diamonds.
The blue-colored moon appeared in the sky, with clouds around him. It was hiding at one time while being visible at another moment.
As if playing hide and seek with the onlookers, the cold breeze passed by, relaxing the ones outside.
'Thump', 'Thump'
The sound of some giant creature walking could be heard, and the area around it became silent. No creature wants to get the attention of the one responsible for this noise.
Strange bald trees could be seen all over the place with strange branches. They moved as the breeze passed by.
When the Wagon arrived, they started shaking. In the area covered with such trees, there was a big road.
Soon, a colossal wagon appeared on it, pulled by a giant creature with an ox-like structure.
In the torchlight of the cart, a mysterious figure could be seen wearing black clothes. He was wearing a hat; his hand held the reins connected to the beast, while his other held the tobacco pipe.
With a relaxed exhale, he released a plume of fragrant smoke with a carefree expression, as if he were not in the middle of a terrifying forest but in his backyard.
In the Wagon behind him, countless clueless students could be seen. Looking at each other and the area around them with tense expressions.
"Where are we going at this time?" asked one of the girls.
"I don't know. I had no idea something like this would happen," replied the girl beside her as she held her skirt tightly.
"I still remember a sudden announcement that all students had to gather before the gate in uniform."
"You are right; it was out of nowhere. The moment I reached there, I was told to enter Wagon with other students."
"We have been traveling for many hours without a clue where we are going or why."
"You are right; the teacher is also not explaining anything; every time I ask her, she replies, "You will know when we reach our destination." "
They looked at the fair-skinned lady sitting before them with long blonde hair, yellow eyes, and slit pupils.
If anyone watched her sit calmly with a smile on her lips, they might find her attractive and gorgeous.
However, anyone who knew her would have a different opinion—especially students, which she bullied every day in class.
Due to her personality and cruelty, she was named the witch by the class, so trying to look for a lost needle in a haystack would have more chances than trying to look for a student who liked her.
Her presence was enough to depress some students; they believed nothing good could come out when she was involved in something.
"Bro, I am not getting good vibes. Why do I feel something is not right?" said the silver-haired boy.
The other boy turned his head and stared at him. "You don't need to state what is obvious; we are in trouble."
A small demon sat beside them; he had a triangular head and two different-colored eyes. "Where are they taking us? Sssqueak!"
"No idea; I guess all we can do is wait. You will find out that all first-year students are present if you notice. Maybe it will be some test." replied the boy with messy hair that draped over his face like snowflakes.
"I was already expecting something like that," said a boy with a pale face and dark eyes, without an iris or pupil.
He kept looking outside the window before him on the other side and continued with his low and cold voice, "It has been four months since we arrived at the school."
"How can everything be so easy? This school was not built for students to enjoy their golden time; it was built to train them. What awaits us is a deadly trial.
Everyone around him looked at the boy; his gray hair was tied behind his head in a ponytail. He had two black-colored horns bent backward.
This area was quiet for a moment; the students were thinking about something.
His voice echoed in their heads as they tried to connect the dots. While they had given some small tests, there was no major test.
They found that there could be some truth in this boy's words.
"How can you be so sure?" asked Rydan.
"You need to have a functional brain to understand that; I don't talk in circles."
"Youuu," Rydan was about to stand up, but he was stopped by Amon and forced to sit back.
"First, look at the place where we are before reacting," said Amon, unhappy with his friend's reaction.
He then looked at the boy sitting near him and looked at his cold face; he had no expressions.
Not a hint of worry, tension, joy, or any other emotion could be sensed from him. His presence was so normal that he had not noticed him until now.
Amon could not figure out why he felt something was wrong with this person; from his behavior to temperament, he felt like something was missing.
Reacting to his stare, the boy turned his head for the first time. The blue-colored, crystal-clear eyes of Amon met the dark eyes of the boy beside him, who was devouring every ounce of light that entered them.
It was as if time had slowed down when their eyes met; it continued for a while before the same expression appeared on their faces.
They had their brows raised, and their eyes widened. Amon felt as if he were looking at the darkness itself when he stared at those eyes.
He could sense an eerie feeling from them. It was as if they were masking something.
The other one reacted the same way because he was surprised someone could stare calmly and have regular eye contact with him. This was something that should not be possible.
'Interesting,' he said as he rubbed his chin.
Amon coughed to break the ice between them; he then moved his hand forward and introduced himself: "I am Amon; nice to meet you."
The boy was confused for a moment, not knowing how to react. It was as if he had never faced this situation before.
Amon felt awkward and confused; he always thought he reacted weirdly sometimes. Now, he has found someone who is in a different league when it comes to being weird.
"I am Xyler," he introduced himself in a low tone as he brought his hand forward. They shook their hands before the daggering eyes of Rydan, who felt betrayed.
As the Wagon moved further, they started discussing about other things. Amon found Xyler to be resourceful and intelligent; the only bad part was that he had to be the one to lead the conversation.