Chapter Two: The Girl Everyone Avoids
(Part III — The Bell That Should Never Be Answered)
The Headmaster stepped away from the podium.
For a brief moment, silence lingered inside the Grand Session Hall, as though the ancient chamber itself was allowing everyone to digest his words.
"Power does not choose heroes..."
"It chooses survivors."
Those words echoed repeatedly inside Darkus' mind.
He frowned.
He couldn't explain why, but something about that statement unsettled him.
It wasn't fear nor disagreement, it simply felt... Wrong. As if those words were less a welcome speech and more a warning.
The silence finally broke as another figure stepped onto the stage.
Unlike the Headmaster's modern appearance, this man looked much closer to what Darkus had imagined a fantasy academy official would be.
He wore deep navy robes embroidered with intricate silver patterns that shimmered faintly under the enchanted lights.
An elegant cape rested over one shoulder, fastened by a crest depicting seven intertwined stars.
Despite appearing no older than forty, strands of silver threaded through his dark hair, giving him an air of quiet authority.
His sharp amber eyes swept across the sea of students.
"I am Professor Aster Valen," he announced. "Head of Student Affairs and the Sort and Order Division."
His voice was calm but commanding.
"The Headmaster has welcomed you." He started.
"My duty is to ensure you remain alive long enough to graduate."
A ripple of nervous laughter spread through the freshmen but the professor didn't smile.
"...That was not a joke." He sternly added.
The laughter died immediately.
Darkus noticed several upperclassmen exchanging knowing glances.
No one else seemed surprised.
Professor Valen began explaining the academy's structure.
The Seven Departments.
The annual Sorting Examination.
The combat arenas.
The archives.
The alchemy district.
The dormitories.
The libraries that were said to contain books older than entire kingdoms.
Every explanation only made Spēju Akadēmija seem less like a school and more like a city hidden from the rest of the world.
Then came the academy rules.
Some were expected.
Students were forbidden from engaging in lethal combat. Unauthorized access to sealed facilities was prohibited.
Summoning rituals required faculty supervision.
Artifacts ranked Crimson Class or above could not be carried outside designated zones.
Darkus quietly memorized everything.
Nothing unusual.
Until...
Professor Valen paused.
The hall grew still once again.
His expression became noticeably more serious.
"There is one final rule."
No one spoke. No one even shifted in their seats.
The floating stars overhead seemed to dim ever so slightly.
"If..." He allowed the silence to stretch. "...you hear someone calling your name after curfew..."
His amber eyes slowly swept across the hall.
"...Do not answer."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Darkus blinked.
That was it?
He waited for an explanation.
None came.
The professor simply continued.
"If you hear footsteps outside your dormitory..."
"Ignore them."
"If someone knocks..."
"Ignore it."
"If the voice belongs to someone you trust..."
"Ignore it."
"If it sounds exactly like your friend..."
"Ignore it."
"If it sounds exactly like your own voice..."
"...Especially ignore it."
A chill quietly crawled down Darkus' spine.
This time... No one laughed. Not even the freshmen.
The atmosphere inside the Grand Session Hall had become unbearably heavy.
Darkus glanced sideways.
The clown-like girl stood perfectly still. Her cheerful smile had completely disappeared. Instead, her fingers quietly tightened around the sleeve of her academy uniform.
Not enough for others to notice. But enough for him.
"...She's scared."
The realization caught him off guard.
Someone who laughed at almost everything was frightened by a single academy rule.
Why?
Before he could ask...
Professor Valen bowed.
"The ceremony is concluded."
"Welcome... to Spēju Akadēmija. Enjoy your school year here."
≈≈≈≈≈
The enchanted stars brightened once more.
The solemn atmosphere gradually dissolved as students began standing from their seats.
Conversations slowly returned.
"What kind of rule was that?"
"Probably an old academy tradition."
"They're just trying to scare the freshmen."
"I almost believed him."
Darkus silently joined the flow of students exiting the Grand Session Hall.
His only goal now was simple.
Disappear.
Preferably before the girl beside him noticed.
He slipped into the crowd, carefully adjusting his pace.
One step.
Two.
Three.
He glanced behind him.
No sign of her.
Good.
He allowed himself a small sigh of relief.
Perhaps fate had finally decided to—
"Hi."
Darkus nearly jumped.
He turned his head.
She was already walking beside him with the brightest smile imaginable.
"...How?"
She blinked innocently.
"What?"
"...How did you get here?"
"You walk slowly."
"I don't."
"You do."
"I don't."
"You do."
"..."
"..."
Darkus sighed.
"...You're annoying."
Her smile somehow became even brighter.
"I get that a lot."
"I can tell."
They continued walking through the marble corridors. Students moved around them in small groups, yet something remained different.
Whenever others noticed the girl, conversations abruptly stopped. Some students crossed to the opposite side of the hallway. Others lowered their heads. A few even whispered prayers beneath their breath.
Darkus finally asked the question that had been lingering inside his mind since earlier.
"...What exactly did you do?"
The girl looked genuinely thoughtful.
"Hmm..." She tapped her chin.
Darkus waited.
Several long seconds passed.
The longer she thought the more concerned he became.
Finally—
"I accidentally blew up a laboratory once."
Darkus stopped walking.
"...You what?"
She smiled.
"Kidding."
Darkus stared.
She giggled.
"...Mostly."
"...Mostly?"
"Well..." She scratched her cheek. "There wasn't much laboratory left."
Darkus couldn't tell whether she was serious. He didn't even know if he wanted to know. Before he could ask another question—
DONG...
A bell echoed throughout the academy. Not loud. Not deafening but the sound seemed impossibly ancient.
It carried a strange melancholy. As though mourning something that had long since vanished.
Every student froze.
Every professor.
Every staff member.
No one spoke. Almost instinctively, everyone lifted their heads toward the tallest tower overlooking Spēju Akadēmija.
Darkus followed their gaze.
Far above the academy, hidden among drifting clouds is an enormous bronze bell hung inside an open stone tower.Its surface was covered in ancient runes worn smooth by countless centuries.
The bell rang again.
DONG...
The sound seemed to vibrate through his bones then for the third and final time —
DONG...
Silence.
The academy slowly resumed moving.
Students continued walking as though nothing unusual had happened.
Darkus frowned.
"...What was that?"
No one answered.
He turned toward the girl beside him.
"...Hey."
Silence.
He frowned.
"...Bad News?"
Nothing.
Darkus stopped walking.
She was gone.
He looked behind him.
Nothing.
Ahead.
Nothing.
To his left.
To his right.
Only unfamiliar students.
She had been beside him a heartbeat ago.
Now... She had vanished. Not disappeared into the crowd. Not hidden behind someone. Gone. As though she had never existed.
A cold breeze drifted through the corridor. The enchanted banners hanging overhead fluttered softly.
Darkus slowly turned.
"...Where..."
Then—
Right beside his ear...
A familiar giggle.
"...Pfft."
His entire body stiffened. He spun around.
No one.
Only empty hallway.
Students walked past without paying him any attention.
Another gust of wind swept through the corridor. It carried a faint sound. Laughter.
Light.
Playful.
Almost teasing.
It echoed farther and farther away until even the wind swallowed it whole.
Darkus remained standing in place.
For the first time since arriving at Spēju Akadēmija...
A single thought surfaced clearly in his mind.
Perhaps everyone had a reason to avoid the girl called Bad News. And perhaps he had already become involved far deeper than he had ever intended. Far above the academy, hidden behind the drifting clouds, the ancient bell remained silent. Yet for the briefest instant, one of the countless glowing runes etched into its weathered bronze surface flickered with a deep crimson light.
Then, just as quickly it faded as if something had awakened and somewhere within the vast grounds of Spēju Akadēmija...
Someone smiled in the dark.