Seven Days Later
Mara was sleeping peacefully in his room.
The place looked calm and quiet. Several flower vases were placed on the table, while deep and energetic rays of sunlight spread through the window of his room. The sun was shining brightly today, as if it had brought a new hope with it.
Mara slowly opened his eyes.
Today, he was finally able to walk properly again. There had been no lack in his treatment and care, though the marks of his wounds were still visible on his chest.
Mara was happy today, because this was his first day at the ashram—
a place that could help him reach success.
With a calm expression, he walked toward the bathroom.
Ajina was walking along a forest path.
The place looked unusually clean and peaceful. He wore a black suit and a mask covered his face.
As he walked, he spoke quietly,
"With the hope of staying alive…
I continue chasing the desire to bring back those whom death has already called."
He paused for a moment.
"But what can I say…?
This life either disgraces you while you are alive…
or kills you just to show its own power."
Suddenly, he bent down slightly and placed a hand on his stomach.
"…Brother, I'm seriously hungry now," he muttered.
"What should I even do?"
He looked around.
"There are so many trees here…"
After that, Ajina started searching for a place to eat.
"There isn't even a single shop here," he complained while continuing to walk forward.
Suddenly, his eyes fell on a car that had overturned on the side of the road.
However, Ajina did not seem affected by the sight at all.
He glanced at it once.
Then, a hand slowly came out through the broken window of the car.
Even after seeing that, Ajina silently continued walking forward.
"I'm too hungry for this…" he muttered in his mind.
After Ajina left, Torisa slowly crawled out from the car window while heavily breathing and trembling. His hands were shaking violently, yet surprisingly, he did not have even a single scratch on his body.
"What is happening…?" he whispered in confusion.
A moment later, he moved toward the other side of the car and pulled someone out from inside.
The person looked short and overweight.
Back at the ashram, Mara was feeling happy.
He stepped out of his room carrying a bag on his shoulder.
"So this is our ashram… but where exactly is the classroom?" he wondered while looking around.
He began walking down the stairs. As he reached the second floor, he noticed a boy standing nearby. The boy was also carrying a bag and was locking the door to his room.
Mara suddenly stopped walking.
"Looks like this guy came here to study too," he thought.
He then continued down the stairs and reached the same floor as the boy.
The moment Mara arrived, he loudly asked,
"Hey, who are you, and what are you doing here?"
The boy slowly turned toward him and started walking in his direction.
As soon as Mara saw his face, he froze in surprise.
It was Artha.
"Who are you…?" Mara asked in confusion.
"My name is Artha," the boy replied calmly.
Mara kept staring at him carefully.
Then Artha said,
"Did you forget the battles that happened during the Red Moon, Mara?"
Mara placed a hand on his head and said,
"Oh right… you're that same Artha who did absolutely nothing during the Red Moon!"
Hearing that, Artha was left speechless.
"Come on," Mara continued casually. "We have to go study now. Do you know what they're going to teach us?"
"I have no idea," Artha replied.
Mara suddenly wrapped an arm around Artha's shoulder and pulled him into a hug while dragging him toward the ground floor.
"Hey, let me go!" Artha shouted. "One person is still left behind!"
This time, Artha placed a hand on Mara's shoulder and quickly pulled him along.
At that moment, Mara looked less like a person and more like a waving flag being dragged around by Artha.
They soon reached the very last room on the floor and stopped in front of it.
Artha knocked on the door of Vikar's room.
A moment later, Vikar opened the door. But the instant he saw Artha, he immediately slammed the door shut again.
Seeing that, Mara shouted,
"Open the door, or you're finished!"
The next second, Vikar violently opened the door. He looked extremely angry.
The moment Artha saw his expression, he instantly started running away.
Mara also began running behind him in confusion.
"Why are we running?!" Mara asked while chasing after Artha.
Artha suddenly slapped Mara on the head and shouted,
"You idiot! Run, or that fat guy won't spare you either!"
Right after that, Vikar started sprinting after both of them at full speed.
"What about studying?!" Mara yelled.
"We'll have to reach class while running at this rate!" Artha replied.
Vikar, Artha, and Mara finally left their building and headed toward their class.
After walking for a while, they noticed another building nearby. Written on it were the words:
Vilina Education
The three of them entered the building and soon noticed a board labeled Class 5.
"Maybe this is the place," Artha said.
As they walked inside the classroom, they realized that there were only five or six students present.
Among them were Vasuki, Maya, and Lina.