Just as Nathan was about to speak with Sera, a massive tremor was felt around the hall and the military academy. This tremor was a sign that a new dungeon of monsters and demons had been formed, and this had only happened in the past few months—triggering the military academy's alarm and causing it to sound.
All personnel were urged to immediately go to their rooms. Nathan clicked his tongue in frustration and couldn't do anything but leave Sera first and head to his room.
Sera saw Nathan leave before she could say anything, could only sigh, she then left the auditorium and walked back to her room like the others.
On his way to his room, the intense tremors continued but subsided slightly. Nathan then tried to think of another plan for his future when he graduated from the military academy.
----
When he arrived at his dorm room, the tremors had subsided further. He received a notification that all personnel were required to attend a meeting in the auditorium in three hours—he wasn't too concerned about it, and opened one of the equipment cabinets in his room.
Inside the cabinet, there were various magical equipment that Nathan had collected, including rings, necklaces, and bracelets—the accessories had magic stones embedded in them that could enhance the user's attributes.
"Oh... So this is what's in your room, I've never seen it before."
A female voice was heard behind Nathan, he turned around with a flat expression, not surprised at all. He then clicked his tongue when he saw that the girl was Sera, who had somehow sneaked into his dorm room.
"How did you sneak in here, huh? The room was locked before and you were still in the auditorium," he said with a slightly annoyed expression, especially since Sera entered without permission.
"Of course, using skills, right? I was just curious, that's why I followed you, but I didn't expect you to have a lot of preparations, " she said while elegantly fixing her long hair, she also sat down on the edge of Nathan's bed casually.
He just sighed softly and didn't pay much attention to Sera's presence, he sat down on the chair where he usually read books—picked up a book and started reading it. Sera could only look around Nathan's room because it was her first time in a guy's room.
"By the way, what were you going to talk to me about earlier in the auditorium?" She asked, standing up and approaching Nathan, who was reading a book.
Nathan remained silent, he felt a bit suspicious about Sera's change in attitude, he just kept reading the book about the anatomy of living creatures in this world. Nathan looked into Sera's eyes—her eyes were very empty and unlike her usual self.
He then felt Sera's hand slowly touch his clothes, making him feel uncomfortable. Sera kept teasing Nathan and whispering something into his ear, making Nathan suspicious of her sudden change in behavior.
Nathan turned around and stood up from the chair, while Sera could only smile with the black pupils in her eyes.
"What's going on with you? Who are you really?" Nathan said with a sharp gaze, his fists already clenched.
"Huh? It's me, Sera, is something wrong? You're being really mean, " Sera replied while putting her index finger on her lips, speaking in a cuddly tone.
He, hearing that, could only smile and close his eyes. Seeing that, Sera could only laugh softly.
Nathan's two hands, which had previously been clenched tightly, immediately lunged for Sera's neck and choke her
her neck forcefully—causing Sera to fall and be unable to speak, while Nathan became even more forceful in choking her.
Sera, who couldn't breathe and kept struggling, eventually grew weak and lost consciousness; her body slowly dissolved and disappeared like dust.
Feeling that his suspicion was correct, Nathan felt that someone was intentionally manipulating him or setting him up against Sera. He then left the room and tried to meet Sera.
----
On the other side, Sera hadn't gone to her dorm room yet, she was in the library and reading books there. The library was very empty and desolate, there was only Sera alone who filled the library.
While reading a book, she closed her eyes. In her vision, she was hugging Nathan's shoulder and flirting with him—so that soon after, Nathan choked her until she lost consciousness, causing the vision to break and she opened her eyes again
She tried to figure out Nathan's true nature, and it didn't yield any results on the first try. Sera couldn't guess what Nathan was really like, and what she knew was that Nathan never trusted anyone
Sera was able to create a shadow of herself, and share her vision with the shadow of herself
Not long after, the sound of footsteps was heard from behind her—the footsteps were getting closer, Sera closed her book and suspected that the person was Nathan, she turned around and stared at the person whose footsteps had stopped
Her guess was wrong, the person wasn't Nathan, but a girl. The girl looked nervous and looked down, her silver hair covering her nervous face, making Sera confused
"Uh... Um, sorry... The book you're reading is mine, I-I accidentally left it here when I went to the library last night," the girl said while fidgeting with her hair
"Eh? Sorry, I didn't know... Please take it back," Sera replied while standing up, she tried to apologize with a thin smile on her face
"N-no, it's okay, you can keep reading it," the girl finally raised her head and smiled nervously at Sera
"Oh, okay... How about we read the book together?" Sera sat back down and pointed to the book with a gentle smile
"I-is it okay?" the girl said
Sera nodded, and then the girl sat down beside her nervously. They finally read the book together, although they were still awkward with each other
----
They continued reading the book, and after a few minutes, Sera's hand kept turning the page every time they finished reading the previous one. Sera noticed that the girl kept glancing at her repeatedly—and it made her a bit awkward
"By the way, we haven't introduced ourselves, right? My name is Sera... What about you?" Sera asked, starting a conversation to break the awkwardness, especially since they were still strangers
"M-my name is Fiola Cylei, I-I already know you, a-and I also admire you, it seems like everyone in this military academy knows who you are," Fiola said nervously, playing with her hair shyly
"Really? I'm not that popular, and I'm in the same year as you guys," Sera replied with a thin smile and a small laugh
"T-that's not true! You're so popular and amazing, you're the only female Sorcerer Arcane in this academy! You're also one of the top scorers in this academy!" Fiola said excitedly while standing up, she immediately covered her face, embarrassed by what she said
"Really? I'm not that amazing, there are many people stronger than me, you know," Sera chuckled, then smiled and laughed softly at Fiola
"Cylei...!!"
The guy's voice was heard as they were laughing, hearing that—Fiola's expression immediately changed to extremely panicked and pale. They both looked up, and Sera saw the golden haired guy, while Fiola's head was only bowed down
"Hey, I told you not to talk to people without thinking!" the guy said, approaching Fiola and pointing at her face
The guy, with irritation, immediately grasped Fiola's hand tightly and pulled her hard—as if forcing Fiola to leave the library
"Wait a minute! Who are you to just drag her away like that?!" Sera said with a sharp gaze, quickly brushing off the guy's hand that was holding Fiola's
"S-sorry Sera... H-he's my older brother..." Fiola replied, her tears starting to flow down her cheeks
"Don't touch him! Fiola! Get to the dorm room now!" the guy shouted angrily at his little sister, and gave Sera a piercing glare
Sera tried to defend Fiola, but Fiola quickly turned around and ran out of the library, crying as she left the golden haired guy and Sera alone in the library
"Why are you threatening her like that?" Sera asked, her sharp gaze still fixed on the guy
"Shut up, she's not fit to be friends with anyone, she can only curse her friends," the guy said calmly, still glaring at Sera
"Huh? You're her older brother, right? Why are you treating your own sister like that, huh?" Sera asked, laughing bitterly
"That's... because I care about her," the guy replied, exhaling slowly
"Tch, I don't have time to talk to you, don't ever talk to her again, you'll never understand and you don't need to," the guy said, turning to leave the library
The guy exited the library and his shoulder accidentally bumped into Nathan's shoulder as he was heading into the library—they just stared at each other for a moment, and the golden haired guy left without saying a word
----
Nathan entered the library and saw Sera still standing there. He narrowed his eyes and approached her
Sera, seeing Nathan, tried to act like her usual self, calm and expressionless. She knew for sure Nathan would ask about her shadow
As Nathan approached Sera, he just picked up the books near her. Ignoring Sera in front of him, he sat down at the library desk
"Eh...?"
...