There were three students who were always in trouble: Natasha Smith, John Kevin Garcia, and Henry Samonte. They were in their fourth year of secondary school. The school they attended was called the Academy of Mystical Arcania, renowned throughout Pilepia for its high-quality teaching of various kinds of magic. The academy was divided into four houses called Luzia, Visca, Danao, and Banaue.
The story began because of the audacity of these three students.
"Are you sure it's here, Vin?" Henry asked Kevin.
"Yeah, I followed him here earlier," Vin replied.
"Wait, I think it's here, somewhere around here," Vin answered uncertainly.
"Oh
"Oh John Kevin, we'll be here until sunrise," Natasha exclaimed.
Meanwhile, Henry was also searching for a door that might connect them to Mikel. He stopped at a large door and read the inscription above it, "Princess Arkisha, Daughter of Captain Nayong of Miradoris."
Vin immediately opened the door Henry was staring at.
"Come on, let's start this so we can find the answers," Vin said, signaling that they had found what they were looking for.
Upon entering, they were met with a dark room, filled with dust, cobwebs, and seemingly no ventilation. Natasha organized their things while Vin lit three candles—one white, one blue, and one black. Henry, on the other hand, scanned the room carefully.
"Let's begin," Natasha urged. She took out the book and read the words in front of a painted portrait of a woman.
Flashback
"Nat, where's Henry?" Vin asked Natasha.
"He said he needed to return a book to the library. Why? What do you need now?" Natasha replied.
"You won't believe what I saw earlier," Vin said softly. He was about to start his story when Henry arrived.
"Perfect timing. Come here quickly," Vin ordered. The three of them found a quiet corner and Vin began to share his discovery.
"I saw the leader of Visca heading to the cemetery. I thought he was visiting someone, but he didn't even have flowers with him. I noticed he had something in his pocket—looked like a candle. Then he entered a room near the statue of Captain Nayong," Vin recounted.
"And then?" Nat asked.
"I didn't follow him in. I felt uneasy when the door opened, so I just waited outside," Vin added.
"What happened when he came out?" Nat asked.
"His eyes were puffy. He looked sad, angry, and regretful," Vin said sadly.
"That bad? Mikel, the leader of Visca, that grumpy guy?" Nat asked.
"Henry, what do you think? Why are you so quiet?" Vin asked Henry.
"I discovered something earlier about my parents," Henry said seriously.
"What did you find out?" Vin asked.
"I overheard Professor Leo talking to Mikel. They almost fought. I found out that I wasn't the target of Mr. Black the night my parents were killed," Henry recounted in a daze.
"What do you mean you weren't the target?" Nat asked in confusion.
"They mentioned a name... Arkisha," Henry added.