He woke up late.
Far too late.
He jumped out of bed, pulled on his black shirt—inside out—slung his backpack over his shoulder, and rushed out the door without even saying goodbye to his mother.
"I'm late!" he shouted as he ran down the stone-carved stairs two steps at a time.
The mining city stirred awake around him. Hanging bridges filled with people, blue crystals lit the walls like stars trapped in stone, and houses embedded in the mountain seemed to watch as he sprinted wildly through the passages.
He took one of the access routes toward the lower levels, where the abyss opened beneath the bridges and the safe mines stretched like veins beneath the city.
He leapt down one last section—and nearly crashed into someone.
"Hey, careful there, champ!" a cheerful voice said.
He skidded to a stop.
Standing in front of him was a tall man with long black hair falling over his shoulders. He wore a black robe that covered most of his body. No insignia. No visible weapons. Just a relaxed smile that didn't belong in a place like this.
"Watch where you're running," the man added, laughing. "At this rate, they'll graduate you straight into the professional abyss diver class."
He frowned.
"I don't have time for jokes."
The man raised his hands in surrender.
"Alright, alright. I'm just saying—the world looks better when you don't sprint through it like it's trying to kill you."
They walked together toward one of the platforms overlooking the safe mines, where bridges stretched over the void and blue crystals glowed along the walls like frozen rivers of light.
The stranger studied him with interest.
"Nice necklace," he said casually. "You don't see many that aren't blue around here."
He tensed.
"That's none of your business."
The man blinked… then burst out laughing.
"Well! Straight to the point. I like you, kid. Most people get nervous before they get rude."
Beneath his shirt, the green crystal pulsed once.
The man tilted his head.
"Huh… interesting."
Before he could say anything else, a roar split the air.
From one of the side tunnels emerged a creature that didn't belong there.
It looked like a massive boar the size of a horse, with blue crystal tusks and stone plates covering its back. Mana burned in its eyes, and the ground shook with every step it took.
"That…" he said slowly, "shouldn't be here."
"Correct," the man replied with a calm smile. "That's one level higher than today's menu."
The creature charged.
He stepped back.
The man stepped forward.
He drew no weapon.Raised no staff.
He simply lifted his hand.
The air trembled.
A faint circle of light appeared before him—and in an instant, the beast was hurled into the rock wall with a thunderous crash that rattled the bridges. The creature squealed, staggered to its feet… and fled back into the tunnel it came from.
Silence.
He stared at the man, eyes wide.
"What… what class are you?"
The man shrugged.
"The kind that eats after work."
He clapped him on the shoulder.
"Come on. That look says you're starving."
They ate at one of the hanging stalls suspended over the abyss. From there, the mining city spread out in every direction—houses carved into stone, bridges crossing empty space, blue lights marking paths like constellations.
"You know," the man said between laughs, "most people dream of leaving this place. You run like something's chasing you… but your eyes look like something's calling you."
He didn't answer.
They continued toward the northern level, where the light began to change.
There stood a massive gate of metal and stone, marked with ancient symbols and guarded by crystal barriers.
The dungeons.
The man stopped before them.
"There are a thousand adventures in there," he said lightly, though something deeper hid behind his smile. "Pure crystals. Creatures that don't show up in books. Places that never exist the same way twice."
"I can't enter," he replied. "Only the Kingdom's Brigade can."
The man glanced at him sideways.
"Then I suppose you already know where you need to go."
He pulled something from his robe and placed it in the boy's hand.
A fragment of pure blue crystal.
Perfect. Brilliant. Alive.
"That's what's on the other side of those doors," he said."And that's what's waiting for you if you dare to touch the sky instead of digging in the dirt."
He turned away.
"We'll meet again, kid with the strange necklace."
And he vanished among the bridges and blue light.
He clenched the crystal in his hand.
Then he felt the pulse of the green crystal against his chest.
For the first time, he didn't think about the mines.
He thought about the Academy.
And about what he would have to become to cross the northern gate.
High above the mountain, the walls of the capital reflected a green glimmer that no one noticed.
But someone, in the castle, smiled.