Even though she could not make him see what she saw, the sheer seriousness in her voice made the atmosphere turn heavy.
Wayne’s face stiffened. The pleasant office suddenly felt suffocating.
He closed the box imdiately. "I will have this examined."
"It would be better if you get it checked imdiately," Lana insisted, her voice tight with urgency. "And make sure that by tomorrow everyone takes leave and does not co to the university at all."
Principal Wayne frowned, leaning back in his chair as though weighing her words against sothing far heavier.
"Even if I wished to do that, it would be nearly impossible. Tomorrow is Spineridge University’s hundredth anniversary. A major event has already been planned for months. No departnts can be given leave, and that includes the exchange students."
Lana’s heart sank.
"The formation is most likely going to activate tomorrow," she said.
Wayne’s brows knitted together. "Why are you so certain there is a formation at all?"
Lana froze.
Only then did she realize how confident she had sounded, as though she had already witnessed it.
’Why did I say it like that...?’
Her mind drifted back to the strange dream, the image of Axel running toward her while sothing vast and unseen activated around them.
’Did that feeling co from there...?’
But she could hardly tell the principal that she had seen it in a vision.
So she remained silent.
Wayne interpreted her silence differently.
"I will allow you and the others to leave the day after tomorrow. I will even grant a day off then, but the anniversary schedule cannot be changed."
Despite Lana’s repeated attempts to persuade him, Wayne remained adamant.
She could only sigh and leave the office, frustration weighing heavily on her chest.
Once outside, she imdiately ssaged Axel and told him everything.
In the end, she made up her mind.
"I am not coming to the university tomorrow," she muttered.
That evening, Lana returned to her apartnt, and she and Axel began packing their belongings.
The atmosphere was tense, filled with the faint rustle of clothes and the dull thud of suitcase zippers.
The next morning, just as they were about to leave, Principal Wayne called them back.
"I have already dealt with the issue regarding that cream," he assured them. "There is nothing to worry about now. The withdrawal process can be put on hold."
Lana and Axel exchanged uncertain glances.
Wayne continued, "We investigated the supplier, banned the product entirely, and identified those responsible. Everything has been handled. Today’s celebration will proceed without problems."
Despite his repeated reassurances, unease lingered in Lana’s chest like a stone that refused to settle.
Still, Wayne insisted, "This is our centennial anniversary. If all exchange students suddenly leave, it will raise questions we cannot afford."
With no imdiate justification left to refuse, Lana and Axel could only return with a reluctant sigh.
On the way back, they tried to console each other.
"If sothing feels wrong, we leave imdiately," Axel said quietly.
Lana nodded. "Yes. We will not stay if anything strange happens."
Even she tried to convince herself.
After all, in her previous life, Spineridge University had never been involved in any catastrophic scandal. Its na had never appeared in the headlines.
’Maybe I am overthinking... Maybe history will repeat the sa way.’
When they arrived, the university was completely transford.
Colorful banners stretched across buildings, golden ribbons fluttered in the breeze, and the air slled of flowers, incense, and freshly polished wood.
Students laughed, music played faintly in the distance, and everything looked overwhelmingly festive.
For a mont, Lana almost relaxed.
But then she saw it.
A thin black mist was curling around so of the students.
Her breath caught.
They looked perfectly normal, chatting and walking, yet that shadow clung to them like sothing alive.
Suddenly, she rembered a piece of news from her past life. In order to catch a GA mber, the Spineridge university scarificed a lot of students.
The Spineridge University was praised to heaven for its contribution and even given awards.
Lana’s eyes widened.
’The investigation... was fake.’
A terrible realization struck her.
’Whatever sacrifices happened here were not for so noble group catching. This was caused by soone’s reckless actions.’
Just as panic began to rise, her phone buzzed.
A ssage from Garrison appeared in the sponsored group.
"Everyone gather at the sponsored car location imdiately."
Lana did not hesitate.
She turned and rushed toward the university entrance, silently cursing the enormous size of the campus. At her normal pace, it would take at least half an hour to reach the gate.
She pulled out a speed talisman and pressed it onto herself.
Energy surged through her legs.
Wind whipped past her ears as she ran, covering distances in minutes.
Soon she was only ten minutes away from the gate.
And then... It happened.
The tragedy she had feared.
The sky dimd as though soone had drawn a veil over the sun.
The festive noises warped into sothing hollow and distant.
A strange chill spread through the air, carrying a tallic sll that made her stomach twist.
Students began acting strangely.
So bent over as if crushed by invisible weight. Others twitched unnaturally. A few stared blankly, their pupils dilated.
Lana clenched her fists and kept moving.
But suddenly, she felt it.
A suffocating pressure closing in around her.
Her breathing beca difficult, as though the air itself had thickened.
Instinctively, she reached for the jade bracelet...
Only to realize she had forgotten to wear it.
A wave of dread washed over her.
She grit her teeth and forced herself forward, trying to reach the gate.
But her legs suddenly felt impossibly heavy, like they were filled with molten lead. Each step beca harder than the last.
The aura around her grew denser, darker, pressing against her chest.
Lana looked around desperately for help.
The campus had already descended into chaos.
So students were crawling along walls and ceilings like insects.
So scread in terror.
Others were being attacked by people who no longer seed human.
The celebration had turned into a nightmare.
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