Yuna woke up with a pounding headache, as if she had been trapped in a dream where her body burned through far too much energy. It was not a pleasant dream by any means.
But that was beside the point.
Today, the teachers had given them a day off—reason unknown.
Oh, and today was also the day when students could check the notice board for updates: the performance of Evigheden Academy's social activities compared to other academies, and even the rankings of each card class.
Once a month, news from the outside world was delivered to their otherwise isolated academy. Yuna usually wasn't curious about such things. As long as the empire's economy remained stable, her grandfather's life as a commoner would remain safe and steady.
With that comforting thought, Yuna dragged herself out of bed, cleaned up, and reluctantly put on her uniform, fastening the pink heart badge. What a pain.
As she approached the notice board, murmurs and whispers buzzed through the gathered students. Yuna dismissed it as nothing more than excited chatter.
But she was quickly proven wrong.
Something serious had happened outside.
A poisoned rainwater called "The Black Rain" had wreaked havoc across the Lalrem Empire.
Yuna's expression hardened as her eyes scanned the scroll.
There were casualties. Unavoidable deaths.
Her hands curled into fists as she read that nearly a thousand people had already died. Compared to the empire's population, the number might seem small—but death was still death. Unnatural, cruel death.
Thankfully, her grandfather was safe within the capital, protected by the great barrier. Still, the thought of what might have happened if she had left him in the countryside sent a cold chill down her spine.
'A rain that causes sickness… really now'
Yuna refused to believe it was anything but man-made.
Someone was behind this. She was certain of it.
The certainty only grew sharper when fragments of memory stirred—scenes from the novel
'Did the author take inspiration from that?' she wondered faintly.
She couldn't recall the exact figures, only that in the novel nearly one-third of the Lalrem Empire's population was devastated by the "rain sickness." A thousand deaths, then, seemed far too few. Either it was a blessing—or the true calamity had yet to unfold. She couldn't quite remember the details.
"Hmm? Temple of Light? The Divine Light Barrier?"
Her brooding was broken by the excited voices around her.
"The Temple of Light divine being is showing goodwill—or is it hiding some deeper conspiracy? Wow… 'Have You Heard' really knows how to frame a headline. They dare speculate about a deity's intentions. I like it!" one student exclaimed with admiration.
All eyes subtly turned toward Dane, the club-class representative.
After all, he was the grandson of the owner of 'Have You Heard', the empire's most daring and largest news and magazine guild.
Dane only smiled faintly, as though entirely unaffected by the attention.
As for the academy's performance in social activities, well, the news about the black rain was far more attention-grabbing than any competition results.
Still, Oriel Academy undoubtedly took first place. Their students sold artifacts engraved with intricate runes of light—runes that could dispel low-tier darkness and cure minor sicknesses. Naturally, demand surged during the black rain.
Asra Academy also produced artifacts, but theirs differed. Instead of light, they harnessed the power of the moon. These artifacts could heal minor ailments and even generate a low-tier protective barrier, which proved effective against the poisonous rainfall.
In the end, Oriel and Asra Academy stood neck-and-neck in performance.
Evigheden Academy, however, was far less desirable by comparison. Only the club class managed to stand out somewhat—their crafted artifacts took the form of umbrella-like tools. The idea came from a simple thought: with the rainy season approaching, umbrellas would surely sell. Their gamble paid off, though only modestly.
As for the books that the heart class published? Only ten of them were sold. Truly pitiful.
.....
Yuna was called into the principal's office.
Amidst the curious gazes of the students, she made her way inside.
She herself was curious why she was being summoned specifically. It couldn't be because of the Heart Class's poor performance, right?
Nah, it couldn't be.
How could they expect her class to sell well during a pandemic anyway?
As Yuna entered the office, the person who caught her attention wasn't the cute Lolita principal sitting eye-catchingly on a chair far too big for her small frame. No, it was her Master—Zahia Elliohart.
Yuna stared blankly at her. Even though it hadn't even been a year since she enrolled in the academy, its isolation from the outside world made it feel like a lifetime had passed since she last saw her master.
"Not going to greet your master?" Zahia chuckled, raising a brow.
"Why are you here?" Yuna retorted.
"Why can't I be here?"
"You can, but why did you come?"
"To see you, of course."
Yuna rolled her eyes. "As if. Just tell me your real reason."
"Tsk." Zahia rolled her eyes back. "Children should stay out of adult plans."
"Heh. Alright, say what you want to say. I have 'children' stuff to do."
"Your children stuff can wait." Zahia waved her hand dismissively. She took out a thick pile of books, and Yuna immediately knew they were more apothecary books filled with endless potion recipes.
Her expression dropped at the sight of the growing mountain.
As if not noticing Yuna's terrible expression, Zahia said lightly, "These are all the potions I've learned and created in my lifetime. I'll leave them to you. I expect you to learn them all."
Yuna opened and closed her mouth but, in the end, said nothing.
She would learn them… but over a lifetime!
Begrudgingly, she stuffed them all inside her storage pouch.
As Yuna was about to leave the room, a thought suddenly struck her. She turned back to her master.
"You said 'lifetime work.' I won't ask why you're giving me all of it now, or why you even used the word lifetime. I just want to ask—and I want an answer—why are you really here?"
"Exactly, why are you here, dear Zahia? You're not going to tell your appren—"
"Disciple," Zahia cut off the principal, who was watching with interest as if enjoying a play.
"Yes yes, your disciple." Lilith waved her hand dismissively.
Zahia ignored the principal and looked carefully at her disciple and sigh at Yuna expression hidden amidst her dead fish like eyes.
"You see," she began, "the Empire has been in a state of unrest for the past few years, and now it has escalated. Hmm…" She brooded, tapping her fingers. "Your master thinks it's the right time to finally comprehend her own law in full and stand among the grandmasters. Well, I'll likely be the youngest to ever comprehend a full law at my age." A light chuckle left her lips.
Yuna had read about laws and such. She studied them enough to guide her classmates, as if… she didn't understand shiet. Still, she knew enough to realize that the law her master aimed for was one of the hardest—and that there was a high chance she might die if she failed.
Because the law she sought to comprehend was one of the higher-order, one of the supreme: The Law of Destruction.
If she could, Yuna would have knelt down and lamented this world's obsession with strength and power.
Fantasy was wonderful, but this was the serious, dreadful side of it. Birds die for food, people die for money, and in this world—people die for power. And Yuna knew she had no right, no authority, to stop anyone from chasing their goals. Who the heck even was she?
Her lips trembled. Words stuck in her throat—the words that hovered at the tip of her tongue were swallowed back again and again. She didn't even know what she wanted to say, only that she wanted to say something.
But she couldn't leave without saying anything. She just couldn't.
This felt like such an anticlimactic parting. It looked like everyday life when in reality, this was a path, a decision, a moment where they might never meet again.
When she thought of that, Yuna's heart tightened. She hated it—hated this dreadful feeling. She hated that this scene had to happen to her.
Yuna took a slow step toward her master.
She had never hugged her family in her previous life—it was awkward. But screw awkward. She was going to do whatever she wanted. Her mentality was way past that phase now.
Her grandfather's doting nature and his unhesitating expressions of love had softened her rough edges.
So she hugged her master tightly and whispered whatever came to mind, whatever words she could scramble, whatever she hoped might help Zahia on her path—because the novels she read had moments like this. And Yuna hated that all she had to rely on was novels, not real-life experience, applied now in her real life.
"Master, creation is always harder than destruction." She didn't understand it, but she said it anyway. She desperately tried to spit out anything that might help, it helped her classmate right? It can help her master too.... "Creation brings something new into existence, while destruction dismantles what already exists… Destruction makes way for creation. If nothing exists, there can't be destruction, and if nothing is destroyed, nothing new can be created. When there is destruction, there is creation. When there is creation, there is destruction… I… I…"
Her voice choked.
"Shh… Good girl, it's okay. Thank you. I understand much more now." Zahia's tone softened as she caressed Yuna's head. "I'll be alright. I'm your master. I'm amazing, after all."
Yuna didn't lift her head—tears were already slipping from her eyes.
"You have… to come back. I don't want to be a disciple whose master is dead."
"I will—for my sole disciple." She said, her apathetic expression softening ever so slightly.