The faint light of crystal lamps shimmered across the stone walls of the room. Papers, magical maps, and colorful bottles bubbling quietly filled the space. Alia stood in front of the door, arms crossed and face tense.
"What are you doing here?" Her voice was dry and firm. "This is a tech company, not a sightseeing spot for curious wanderers."
Satoru stepped forward without blinking. "We're students from the Southern Kingdom's Magic Academy. We came here with our instructor."
Arne, who was glancing around at the tools in the room, added, "Actually, you're the one who should tell us what you're doing here."
Alia fell silent for a moment, then sighed. Her expression softened slightly. "After you rescued me from those slavers, I came to the capital. I was offered a job here… and I took it. Now I work in the Department of Forbidden Materials and Abandoned Projects."
She took a few steps back and sat on the edge of a desk. "Now it's your turn. What exactly are you looking for?"
Satoru answered without hesitation. "We saw a golem. In the forest near the academy. It was strong—too strong for any regular student to have made. We need to know what it was… and where it came from."
Alia narrowed her eyes. Her tone was calmer, but more concerned. "A golem in the forest?" She cast a quick glance at one of the shelves. "Well... I might have something that could help."
---
A few minutes later, Alia returned with a serious but slightly excited expression.
"I found it."
She pulled out some old pages from under a pile of files and handed them to Satoru. Her fingers trembled slightly, though she tried to hide it.
Satoru glanced over the pages. They were written in a formal script:
> "Official request by Professor Kaya – for the creation of a humanoid golem. Request restricted to Room #2, no external supervision required."
Satoru's eyebrows rose. Arne, who was leaning over his shoulder, bit his lip and said, "Professor Kaya? He's always been quiet… even in magic class, he barely talks. I don't think he'd be working with Exvoid."
As soon as the name "Exvoid" left Arne's mouth, Alia's eyes flickered. A faint shadow of doubt passed through her gaze. She slowly rested her hands on the desk to hide their trembling and said in an artificially calm tone, "Maybe... but a lot of people are good at keeping up appearances."
Satoru carefully watched her reaction but said nothing.
The atmosphere in the room shifted. For a brief moment, a heavy silence hung over them like a weight. Outside, the distant chime of the academy bell echoed... as if something had just begun.
---
A tense silence filled the air. Satoru gave Alia a serious look and quietly said:
"You… about Exvoid…"
But Alia cut him off before he could finish. She suddenly grabbed their shoulders and said more forcefully than before:
"Leave. I've got a lot on my plate right now…"
Without waiting for a response, she pushed them out and shut the door behind them—not in anger, but to escape their eyes.
She leaned against the closed door for a moment, then slowly slid down. Hugging her knees, she lowered her head, and in between shaky breaths, whispered a single word:
"Brother…"
Outside, Satoru and Arne stood silently. Both stared at the closed door. The silence between them wasn't just a pause—it was a shared recognition that the conversation hadn't ended… it had simply sunk to a deeper layer.
At that moment, the soft sound of footsteps echoed in the stone hallway. Teach appeared from around the corner, walking calmly but with purpose. Yuri and Ryan followed behind him.
Yuri stepped forward, glanced briefly at the door, and said:
"Come on. Looks like we've found what we were looking for."
Satoru nodded, but gave one last glance to the door—now no longer just an entrance, but a gateway to unspoken pain.
---
Dusk had fallen over the city. The orange and violet hues of the sky washed over the stone walls of the capital. A cool breeze blew from the main square, and the distant chimes of the market blended with the stillness of night. For a moment, no one spoke. Only the sound of footsteps on stone, and the soft shadows of their movements down a narrow alleyway, away from ArkanTek.
Ryan broke the silence, his tone calm but serious: "What were you doing in that room?"
Arne and Satoru answered almost at the same time: "Met an old friend… and asked her some things."
Teach, walking slightly ahead, said, "Seems like all of this traces back to Kaya."
Satoru paused. "You know Professor Kaya?"
Teach replied with a calm but certain tone: "He's always quiet. Not just in his own classes—even in official meetings, he barely speaks. Most of his time is spent inside ArkanTek."
Yuri muttered under her breath: "I think we're dealing with a lunatic."
Satoru agreed. "We got the same feeling. We need to keep our distance… and find out what he's up to."
Ryan narrowed his eyes. "Once we find proof… it's time to take him down."
---
A few days passed.
The lively atmosphere of outdoor training had now given way to the heavy silence of the teacher's meeting hall. In the dimly lit room, the sound of shuffling reports and the occasional cough broke the tension. Academy banners hung from the walls, and one by one, professors voiced their opinions.
At the end of the meeting, the teachers began to leave.
But Teach remained. Slowly, he walked to a corner of the room where a young professor with long black hair leaned against the wall, eyes cast down.
Teach offered a faint smile. "Hello, Professor Kaya. Not much of a talker, are you?"
Without lifting his head, Kaya replied, "Get to the point, Teach."
Teach shrugged. "No point, really. Just thought a bit of casual chat wouldn't hurt."
No response.
Teach paused, then stepped back and quietly walked away. His footsteps echoed in the empty hall… but Kaya's gaze remained fixed on the floor.
---
At that moment, Kaya stood near one of the hall's windows. His eyes were fixed on the distance, but his mind raced.
He muttered to himself: "So… one of the golems I released in the forest lost control… and got destroyed. But there's no sign of external interference…"
A brief silence.
Then, the corner of his lips curled into a twisted smile.
He whispered, "Looks like things are about to get interesting…"
His footsteps echoed as he vanished from the light.
At the same time, Teach, who had heard his mutter, paused for a moment. A faint smirk crossed his lips. As he walked toward the exit, he softly said:
"Guess Yuri was right… the guy really is nuts."
---
Satoru stared at the cloudy sky above. The sound of birds had faded, as if the world had paused.
In a quiet voice, he said:
"If there was a way back… I wouldn't take it."
Yuri, who always wore a smile, now had a calm and unfamiliar expression. She replied:
"Me neither."
Satoru still looked up. A breeze gently brushed through his hair.
"Let's stay here… even if one day a way back appears, let's not take it."
Yuri was silent for a moment, then smiled and said:
"Wherever you are, I'll be too."
---
Ryan's voice echoed from the hallway, in his usual teasing tone:
"You weird siblings! Come on in, looks like Teach wants to talk to us."
Satoru and Yuri, still outside, exchanged a brief look and turned serious again. Without a word, they stepped toward the door and entered the room.
The atmosphere inside was tense. Teach stood behind a desk, a thick folder in hand. Arne sat near the window, Ryan lounged on a chair, and now Satoru and Yuri joined them.
---
Teach placed the manila folder on the desk. The thud broke the silence for a moment. He glanced at the four of them and said:
"Well… now that we're all here, it's time for an explanation."
He opened the folder and pulled out a few documents.
"Based on what I've found, Kaya hasn't shown any direct signs of collaborating with suspicious groups. But his behavior… is abnormal. Other than when he's teaching or in meetings, he's always holed up in a secondary room inside ArkanTek."
He paused.
"The golems that appeared during the training exercise are recorded as originating from that room. But no one knows what's actually going on in there."
He looked back at his students.
"We don't know if he's acting alone or if he's a member of Exvoid. But what's clear is… we need to find the right time to infiltrate that room."
Then, he slowly sat down in his chair.
"Now… what do you think?"
---
Arne, who had remained silent until then, spoke seriously:
"Satoru and I can ask our friend for help. She can give us a way into Kaya's room."
Before anyone could speak, Yuri and Ryan almost simultaneously said:
"I'm going with Teach."
A short pause.
Satoru glanced at Ryan and calmly said:
"Ryan, we're in the same class. Kaya teaches us. That means you and I need to go inside. We'll be the distraction team."
Teach, arms crossed, nodded and said:
"Good. I, Yuri, and Arne will be the outside guard. You two… distract Kaya as long as you can. We don't have much time."
---
In the main hall, out of sight from others, Satoru and Ryan stood by one of the large windows. Soft midday light filtered through the stained glass, casting colors on the stone floor.
Ryan leaned in and whispered:
"So, we need a plan to mess with that sadistic lunatic's head."
Satoru, arms crossed, replied calmly but dangerously:
"What if we just go in direct? Let's make him nervous."
Ryan raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
Satoru gave a sideways glance at the door and said:
"Let's talk about the golem we saw in the forest. The one we defeated. That'll throw him off—he'll be forced to stay and explain himself."
In the brief silence that followed, Satoru gave a twisted smile—more like a threat than amusement.
Ryan burst out laughing.
"You're even crazier than he is, damn it."