At dawn, Lucard awoke as though everything that had happened to him had been nothing more than a dream.
The first thing that greeted his slowly opening eyes was a familiar ceiling—one he had not seen in what felt like an eternity. So long, in fact, that even the most delusional dreamer lost within an adolescent fantasy could scarcely imagine such a span of time.
He sat up on his bed and slowly swept his gaze across the room.
It was his old bedroom.
His breathing halted.
'Was it all just a dream?'
The moment he looked down at his hands, the haze clouding his thoughts began to clear.
They looked unfamiliar.
His fingers were longer and more refined than he remembered. His skin was pale and flawless, carrying a faint rosy hue. His nails were crimson—almost blood-red—and slightly sharper than normal.
Still naked, he hurried toward the mirror attached to his closet door.
Is this... me?
Lucard stared at his reflection in disbelief.
The person staring back at him looked impossibly beautiful, as though sculpted by a supernatural hand.
His silky, wavy hair had grown darker than before—so dark that it seemed to devour the surrounding light.
Double long eyelashes framed almond-shaped eyes whose once-brown irises had transformed into a brilliant shade of gray. Thick limbal rings surrounded them, while subtle traces of faded yellow blended into hints of blue.
His lips were fuller and naturally pink.
Even his physique had changed. His body was leaner, more refined, with clearly defined muscles beneath flawless skin.
Small fangs protruded from his upper teeth.
The only things that remained unchanged were his average height and his double eyelids, which somehow made him look even more attractive.
"...Whatever."
How had such a young man ended up in such a situation?
And why was he so bewildered?
Why did he stare at his reflection as though the person in the mirror was someone else entirely?
The answer lay far in the past.
Before his transformation, anyone who saw Lucard would have considered him quite handsome, though nowhere near as beautiful as he was now.
He had been an ordinary teenager.
At least, that was what people believed.
Like everyone else, he carried burdens of his own—struggles hidden behind silence and carefully practiced smiles.
Lucard was an orphan.
The only family he had ever known—his foster mother—had supposedly died in an accident.
Because of his background, he was mocked, ridiculed, and looked down upon. Yet he endured it all, swallowing every trace of bitterness and resentment that threatened to grow within his heart.
He was no fool.
If anything, he was the one fooling them.
His silence was not weakness.
It was restraint.
He could not fight back.
They were wealthy and influential.
He was nothing more than an orphan.
Though his foster mother had once owned a small shop, it had eventually been driven into ruin by the cruelty of those who possessed greater power.
What could a poor young man possibly do?
They had wealth.
They had influence.
They had privilege.
Because of that, they were favored.
Especially their children.
Lucard had once attended a prestigious school, but he eventually dropped out.
Many teachers admired his talent and academic excellence.
Others treated him unfairly.
Why?
Because they favored the children of the rich and powerful.
Even those who recognized Lucard's abilities could do little against people who wielded authority.
He understood the reason all too well.
It was because of where he came from.
Yet despite everything he had endured, Lucard was no ordinary student.
He possessed a genius-level intellect.
That was precisely why he had been accepted into such a renowned institution in the first place.
Standing before the mirror, Lucard slowly closed his eyes.
The world erupted into flames.
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
Laughter echoed from every direction.
Mocking him.
Ridiculing him.
Condemning him.
The flames began to glitch.
The surroundings distorted.
Reality flickered like a broken screen.
Then the world changed.
A burned house replaced everything.
Ash-covered silence stretched endlessly.
Charred remains stood where life had once existed.
Only the mirror remained.
Filthy.
Cracked.
Broken.
Lucard stood motionless.
A cold wind brushed against his back.
Slow.
Deliberate.
In the mirror, a ghostly figure appeared.
Faint.
Wavering.
Watching.
Waiting.
Lucard turned around.
His entire body froze.
Before him stood a ghost.
She towered over him, nearly eight feet tall.
Elegant pointed ears emerged from beneath long silken hair that almost touched the floor.
Her features were breathtakingly beautiful.
Too beautiful.
Unnaturally beautiful.
She wore a silver gown that shimmered with a pale glow.
Her body appeared translucent, as though she did not fully belong to the physical world.
Soft violet eyes glowed within the darkness.
They never blinked.
Never moved.
They remained fixed upon him.
As though she had been waiting for this moment. For him.
A chill ran down Lucard's spine.
Yet he refused to show fear.
"WHO ARE YOU?!" he demanded.
"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!"
The elven ghost did not answer.
Silence.
Then her hair began to rise.
Floating wildly around her.
Her beautiful face twisted.
Her eyes enlarged.
Her body expanded.
Larger.
Larger.
LARGER.
The ceiling shattered and darkened.
The walls trembled.
The monstrous apparition continued to grow.
Lucard instinctively stepped back.
The creature suddenly spread its arms.
Its horrifying mouth opened impossibly wide.
Then—
"SKREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"
A ghastly roar exploded through the air.
The monster lunged at him.
Everything happened in an instant.
Lucard's eyes flew open.
A visage of a colossal translucent white dragon loomed before him.
Its immense body glittered with countless grains of luminous sand and rainbow-colored clouds.
The creature filled the sky itself.
Its radiant eyes stared directly into his soul.
Then the dragon opened its jaws.
ROOOOOOOOOOOAR!!!
A violent tempest erupted from its mouth.
The world shook.
The storm engulfed Lucard completely.
"Ahhhhhh!"
Lucard screamed as he fell.
The world blurred around him.
Space twisted.
Light and darkness intertwined.
Everything stretched into a chaotic stream of colors beyond comprehension.
Then a blinding light engulfed him.
...
Lucard opened his eyes.
Scarlet feathers drifted through the air like snow.
One by one, they descended from above, swaying gently as though carried by an invisible breeze.
Lucard stared.
The feathers continued to fall.
Silent.
Endless.
From a distance, he saw her again.
The ghost.
She stood among the falling scarlet feathers, silently watching him.
The moment he focused on her, the world shifted.
In an instant, both of them were standing inside a classroom.
A burst of mocking laughter echoed from every direction.
It came from everywhere and nowhere at once.
Lucard swept his gaze across the room.
Then he noticed it.
A scarlet feather resting upon a desk.
His desk.
Slowly, he approached.
The feather remained motionless.
Waiting.
The moment his fingers touched it, crimson flames erupted across its surface.
The world dissolved.
Once more, the scenery changed.
Lucard found himself sitting atop a grassy mound.
A gentle breeze brushed against his skin.
He recognized this place immediately.
It was where he used to go whenever he wanted to be alone.
Whenever the weight of the world became too much to bear.
Fragments of memory surfaced within his mind.
A scarlet feather.
He remembered seeing one here before.
Lucard slowly turned his head.
There it was.
A scarlet feather rested upon the grass, exactly where he remembered it.
Only a short distance from his right hand.
Waiting for him once again.
Lucard rose to his feet.
The moment he did, the scenery shifted once more.
The grassy mound vanished.
He found himself standing in the living room of his house.
His eyes immediately searched for the elven ghost.
She was gone.
In her place stood an elderly woman.
A worn veil covered her head, and her simple dress showed signs of age and poverty.
Yet despite her humble appearance, a gentle warmth seemed to surround her.
She stood quietly before him.
In her hands rested an ancient-looking book, crowned by a solitary scarlet feather.
With a kind smile on her face, she extended it toward him as though offering him a precious gift.
The moment Lucard laid eyes on the feather, everything fell into place.
An amber radiance blossomed from the old lady's body.
Countless grains of luminous sand emerged from her aura, spiraling outward in silent waves. They danced through the air like fragments of starlight before spreading across the room. In mere moments, the chamber was engulfed in a sea of glowing sand, its golden brilliance casting an otherworldly glow over everything.
"!!!"
A sharp ringing erupted inside his mind.
His eyes widened.
Pain crashed through his skull like a storm breaking against a cliff. He staggered back and clutched his head, his fingers digging into his temples as though he could force the agony out by sheer will.
The ringing grew louder.
Then, countless voices rose from the swirling sand.
Some laughed with unrestrained joy. Some wept in sorrow. Others grieved as though mourning a great loss. Many cried out in agony, their voices filled with unbearable pain.
Amid the cacophony, there were also those who sang—soft melodies drifting through the air like echoes from a forgotten age.
Together, the voices merged into a haunting chorus that sent chills down Lucard's spine. It was as though the sand carried the memories of countless lives, each one whispering its story into the world.
A whisper from the depths of time itself.
The laughter of kings.
The cries of children.
The laments of the forgotten.
The songs of wanderers long lost to history.
Countless voices. Countless lives.
Echoes preserved within the endless river of time.
Lucard felt his heart tremble as the ancient chorus washed over him. Each voice lasted only a fleeting moment before fading into another. Yet every emotion remained vivid, as though he were experiencing them himself.
Joy.
Sorrow.
Love.
Despair.
Hope.
Regret.
An eternity of memories flowed through the golden sand, carrying the weight of ages beyond mortal comprehension.
Then a blinding light engulfed everything.