The midday sun blazed over the academy grounds, baking everything beneath it.
The air shimmered with waves of heat rising from the stone pavement.
As soon as the dismissal bell finished ringing, thousands of students poured out from every building like a flood.
Humans.
Beastkin with pointed ears.
Students with horns.
Others with glowing eyes or tails.
Countless races merged into a single, chaotic stream flowing through the academy gates.
Kai walked with the crowd, slowly tilting his head toward the cloudless sky.
The sunlight was so bright that he had to shield his eyes with one hand.
"So damn hot…"
His lazy complaint dragged out as though even speaking required effort.
Beside him, Mike was practically dragging his feet.
His shirt was soaked with sweat, and his exhausted expression made it look as though he'd survived a torture session.
"If I get home at this hour…"
Mike wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"…I'd normally sleep until evening to avoid this heat…"
"…I'm gonna die…"
His weak voice stretched with every word.
Walking a few steps ahead, Duke scanned the crowd.
Students gathered in groups, chatting and laughing, completely unlike the miserable trio behind them.
"So…"
Duke finally spoke.
"What are we eating for lunch?"
"Do we even have anything left at home?"
Mike answered without hesitation.
"Bread…"
"…and water."
Silence.
Duke sighed, having expected exactly that answer.
"Figures…"
He rubbed his forehead before looking at Kai.
"Did you find anywhere around here that's hiring?"
Kai looked back with a tired expression.
"I already asked my old boss at the armor repair shop…"
Mike immediately looked hopeful.
"Really?"
"What did he say?"
Kai shrugged.
"He said…"
"…the only places hiring nearby are nightclubs…"
"…or brothels."
…
…
…
The three continued walking in complete silence.
Then, almost simultaneously—
All three sighed.
Mike scratched his head awkwardly.
"A nightclub…"
"…doesn't sound that bad."
"I'd probably just be a waiter or something…"
"No!"
Duke's voice exploded so loudly that several nearby students turned to stare.
Mike flinched.
"B-But—"
"No means no."
Duke cut him off immediately.
"I hate nightclubs."
"The music's loud enough to make you deaf…"
"…and everybody smells like alcohol."
He grimaced.
"And the other option is even worse."
Kai smirked.
"So what's the plan?"
"We can't survive forever on bread."
"Exactly…" Mike added miserably.
Duke fell silent for a moment.
Then he let out a long breath.
"Guess we'll have to ask someone with experience."
Kai and Mike both looked at him.
"…Who?"
"The academy teachers."
The two froze.
Mike was the first to recover.
"Have you lost your mind!?"
"What?" Duke shrugged.
"What's wrong with that?"
"What's wrong with that!?"
Mike nearly shouted.
"The people who treat our lives like grass for livestock?"
"You seriously think they'll help us?"
Kai nodded.
"I don't think that's a good idea either."
Duke stopped walking.
He turned toward both of them.
"Do you guys want a proper meal?"
Neither hesitated.
"…Yes."
They answered together.
Duke nodded.
"Then that's what we'll do."
"Tomorrow after class, we'll stay behind for a few minutes."
"Maybe one of the teachers will be willing to help."
Mike still looked uncertain.
"And if nobody helps?"
"We'll figure something else out."
Duke shrugged.
"We're out of options."
Kai sighed.
"What a pain…"
Thump!
A dull collision interrupted him.
Kai suddenly stumbled backward as though he'd walked straight into someone.
"Hey!"
Duke and Mike rushed over immediately.
Duke grabbed Kai's shoulder.
"Watch where you're going."
Mike crouched beside him.
"You okay?"
Kai rubbed the back of his head.
"Sorry, I wasn't—"
He stopped.
Standing in front of him was a girl.
Long black hair flowed gently down her back, swaying softly in the breeze.
She was tall and slender.
The academy uniform she wore made her seem strangely familiar…
…yet distant at the same time.
An indescribable feeling stirred inside Kai.
"…You're…"
"…the girl who answered Siva's question in class, aren't you?"
The girl didn't respond.
She immediately stood up.
Turned around.
And walked away.
Almost as if she were running from him.
"Wait."
Kai stood and instinctively called after her.
"Yu…"
"Yuki, right?"
No answer.
Within moments, her figure disappeared into the crowded marketplace ahead.
She was gone.
Kai remained standing where he was.
His eyes stayed fixed on the direction she'd disappeared.
Something about her bothered him.
It wasn't simple curiosity.
It was…
Something he couldn't quite explain.
Standing behind him, Duke folded his arms.
"Know her?"
Kai slowly shook his head.
"No…"
His eyes never left the crowd that had swallowed her whole.
"…I just…"
"…have a strange feeling…let just go home"
The three of them continue heading home and the golden hues of late afternoon stretched across the rooftops, bathing the quiet neighborhood in a warm amber glow.
The front door creaked open with a soft click.
Mike stepped outside and stretched lazily, every muscle in his body protesting after the exhausting first day at the academy.
"Haa…"
He let out a long breath before filling his lungs with the cool evening air.
"Afternoons really are the best."
He wandered a few steps onto the porch before squatting down, resting his elbows on his knees as he gazed at the sky. The blue above was slowly fading into shades of orange and purple, while clouds drifted peacefully overhead, untouched by the frantic pace of human life.
Then his eyes stopped.
Beneath the large tree in front of the house—the same one where Kai had built a crude wooden table and chairs—a familiar figure sat surrounded by a mountain of clutter.
Mike narrowed his eyes before walking closer.
"Oh…"
"…it's you."
Duke looked up from the mess spread across the table.
The sunlight filtered through the leaves overhead, scattering patches of light and shadow across his face. In front of him lay an assortment of electronic components—bundles of wires, circuit boards, screws, bits of metal, and several strange mechanical parts Mike didn't even recognize.
"Something wrong?" Duke asked without looking up, still holding a tiny screwdriver.
Mike let out a tired sigh before pulling out a chair and sitting across from him.
"Nah."
"I just came out for some fresh air."
"The house felt stuffy."
His eyes drifted over the pile of junk.
"…What the hell are you doing?"
Duke set the screwdriver down and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"I'm trying to finish an important project."
Mike raised an eyebrow.
"A project?"
"That sounds awfully dramatic."
"What kind of project?"
Duke remained silent for a moment before the corner of his mouth curled into a faint smile.
"Nothing special."
"Just… experimenting."
The vague answer only made Mike more confused, but he decided not to press further.
Instead, he glanced around.
"By the way…"
"Have you seen Kai?"
Duke shook his head "No."
"I haven't seen him since lunchtime."
"I was actually hoping to ask him for a favor."
Mike tilted his head.
"What kind of favor?"
Picking up the screwdriver again, Duke carefully tightened a tiny screw on one of the circuit boards.
"I wanted him to check around town."
"See if any shops have broken electronics or scrap parts they're throwing away."
Mike blinked before looking back at the clutter covering the table.
"Hold on…"
"So all of this…"
Mike repeated skeptically.
Duke nodded.
"Yeah, I got it from people across the town."
"It wasn't easy."
"Some places refused to give them to me"
"I had to explain what I wanted."
"Beg a little."
"A few shops even made me trade for the junk."
Mike leaned back in his chair and sighed.
"I seriously don't get you."
"In a world where everyone's worrying about whether they'll survive tomorrow…"
"…you're sitting here playing with electronics."
A faint smile crossed Duke's face.
"Don't worry."
"I know exactly what I'm doing."
There was something unusually firm about his voice.
Mike watched him for several seconds before slowly shaking his head.
"Just don't do anything stupid."
Duke didn't answer immediately.
His faint smile never disappeared.
"I won't."
Silence settled between them.
Only the rustling of leaves overhead disturbed the stillness.
After a while, Duke finally spoke again.
"What about you?"
Mike looked over "What do you mean?"
Duke finally looked up from the circuit board.
"Have you read any of those spell book you got?"
"Or have you already started shooting magic like people do on TV?"
Mike snorted.
"Cut it out, asshole."
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"I skimmed through it…"
"But honestly?"
"I barely understood a thing."
"It's full of weird symbols."
"My head started hurting after a few pages."
Duke nodded.
"Yeah, I figured."
He fell silent again.
This time, when duke spoke, his voice was noticeably quieter "Are you scared?"
Mike paused "Scared?"
"Scared of what?"
Duke slowly lowered the screwdriver onto the table.
His gaze drifted toward the distant town, now sinking beneath the evening light.
"This place."
"This world."
"You never know what's going to happen next."
"We're sitting here today…"
"…but tomorrow we could disappear without warning."
His fingers slowly curled into a fist.
"It's hard to explain."
"It just feels…"
"…like we don't belong."
Mike didn't answer right away.
Instead, he leaned back and looked up through the branches above him, where the fading sunlight shimmered between the leaves like fragments of the sky itself.
After a long silence, he inhaled deeply.
"I think…"
"We'll be okay."
His voice lacked conviction.
"…Right?"
Duke didn't answer.
He simply continued staring into the distance, searching for an answer he didn't have himself.
"…Did I miss something?"
A familiar voice broke the silence.
Both Mike and Duke turned simultaneously.
Kai was walking toward them with both hands tucked into his pockets.
His pace was relaxed.
But their attention immediately shifted to his left arm.
A thick layer of white bandages wrapped from his wrist almost to his elbow, standing out clearly beneath the evening sun.
Duke shot to his feet.
"Hey!"
"What happened to your arm?"
Mike frowned.
"Don't tell me you got into another fight."
Kai raised his free hand and gave them a lazy grin.
"Relax."
"Kitchen accident."
Mike frowned even harder.
"The kitchen?"
"You cut yourself while cooking?"
Kai shook his head.
"No."
"I was just being clumsy."
"It's nothing serious."
Duke stared at him for several seconds.
It was obvious he didn't completely believe the explanation.
"…Alright."
"If you say so."
Kai pulled out a chair and sat beside them.
Resting an elbow on the table, he lowered his head slightly before speaking.
"So…"
"What do you guys think?"
Mike and Duke exchanged confused glances before looking back at him.
"What do you mean?" Duke asked.
Kai smiled faintly.
It wasn't clear whether the smile carried amusement or exhaustion.
"I mean…"
"…our future."
His voice grew quieter.
"What do you think is waiting for us?"
He slowly lifted his head.
The fatigue in his eyes was impossible to hide.
"When our lives…"
"…are worth less than a blade of grass."
Mike swallowed before forcing an awkward smile.
"I guess…"
"…it's going to be rough."
"We'll always have to stay alert."
"We could die at any moment."
He paused.
"But…"
Kai looked directly at him.
"But what?"
This time, Duke answered.
"But…"
"…I think it'll be worth looking forward to."
His voice remained calm.
"At least…"
"…it won't be boring."
Kai remained silent for several seconds.
Then he let out a quiet laugh as his eyes drifted toward the sky, now fading into deep shades of violet.
"…Yeah."
"I guess you're right."
A cool breeze swept through the tree once more, carrying with it the gentle rustling of leaves.
The three of them remained there beneath the tree, sitting together in a world that still felt foreign…
Yet somehow…
It no longer felt as though they were completely alone.