The sky was filled with thick fog that covered the streets. The sound of vehicles passed faintly through the mist. Inside a house—not too small and not too large—a pale young man with black eyes and raven-black hair neatly falling across his face was sitting on a chair, sipping his black coffee with a hint of delight clearly visible on his face.
Kael took another sip of his coffee and nodded with satisfaction. Then he sighed while looking at the sky. He shivered as the memory of his dream returned.
'No... it was not just a dream.
It was clearly a nightmare.'
Still, he was too curious to ignore it.
Leaning back, he tried to recall the strange dream.
'Who was that man... and that lady?'
"Oh yeah... I think his name was Julius. But I can't remember her name."
'She looks strange now... blurry.'
He stared at the distant street where the fog was slowly thinning.
'But why did he kill her? No, not just her. If I remember correctly, he mentioned that he buried everyone.'
"And there was that small guy too... I think his name was..."
Huh?
'What was his name? I know I've heard it. But I can't remember.'
He wasn't even sure how much he truly remembered. Everything felt like broken fragments.
"Forget it... why am I even thinking about this strange dream?"
Kael sighed and stood up. Picking up his cup, he walked toward the kitchen to wash it.
But before he could enter the kitchen, a strange sound came from the direction of the street.
Kael shivered.
Before he could turn around—
Something crashed into his back.
He fell straight to the ground.
"What the hell?!"
Groaning in pain, Kael got up and turned his head around.
Behind him stood a small but cute girl with light brown eyes and a short ponytail, staring at him with shimmering eyes.
Seeing her, Kael sighed.
"You still haven't learned how to greet your uncle properly, huh, Cass?"
Cass ignored him and turned toward her mother.
"Mama! Uncle Kael is here!"
Then she looked back at him with excitement.
"Uncle Kael, I want chocolate!"
A soft smile appeared on Kael's lips.
"I'll give you chocolate only if you promise to greet me properly next time."
Cass nodded energetically and went back to help her mother enter the house.
Kael's house was not just an ordinary house. He was running a small café. Cass and her mother were his regular customers—and also his neighbors. He used to spend his free time talking with Cass, which was why she started calling him "uncle."
Kael watched her and sighed again.
'She used to be shy and introverted when she was five. But now, she has completely changed.'
'How can someone change so much in just one year?'
Thinking about how she might greet him in the future, he shivered.
'I think I need to train myself not to fall to the ground again.'
After greeting Aunt Tess, Cass's mother, he went to the kitchen to prepare coffee for them.
'Of course... I think today is going to be a bad day.'
After serving them coffee and chocolate, Kael spent some time talking about daily life and random things. Later, after saying goodbye to Cass and Aunt Tess, he went to his room, switched on the TV, and opened his usual news channel.
He was about to change the channel when he froze.
The headline on the screen made his heart skip.
[There is going to be an Eclipse Domain Spell opening soon.]
[Residents of X-City are requested to evacuate immediately.]
Kael shivered.
"Isn't this city called X-City?"
A cold realization hit him.
"What the hell is happening today...?"
He turned his head toward the countdown timer displayed below the headline—and froze again.
Am I imagining this... or is it showing Code Red?
Huh?
"Damn..."
His throat went dry.
'I think I'm going to die today... just like the girl in my dream...'