Bewildered, I looked around but the previous image had disappeared, now I was back in the alchemy laboratory. The dense air of the flasks and potions, along with the aroma of incense surrounded . My forehead was sweating, and my hands were shaking uncontrollably. What had just happened? The echo of her words resonated in my mind, like a distant song that I couldn’t reach.
"Cyan, are you okay?" Cynthia’s voice reached , breaking my thoughts.
I ca back to reality, but my mind was still floating sowhere else. I looked at her, trying to hide my confusion.
"Ah... yes, I’m fine," I answered, trying to convince myself. But my heart was still racing, overflowing with unknown feelings.
Cynthia looked at with a concern that I couldn’t ignore. Her eyes, normally so serene, now shone with a concern that made feel out of place.
"You don’t look well, Cyan. I think you should go to the infirmary." Her tone was firm, but also filled with a care that ward my heart a little.
I stared at her, and as I watched her get up to leave, sothing in my chest stirred. A feeling of familiarity suddenly welled up, as if I had felt sothing like this before. Without thinking, I reached out and took her hand, stopping her.
"C-cyan..." she said, surprised by my gesture.
"Wait..." my voice ca out lower, more broken than I expected. A mix of nostalgia and an inexplicable sadness seeped into my words, as if I were asking for sothing I didn’t know how to express.
Perhaps, sensing the tension in my words, Cynthia didn’t move away. We stayed like that, holding hands, in silence, for what seed like an eternity. It was as if ti had stopped for a mont, as if we were both trapped in a bubble of contained emotion.
Finally, class ended. However, Cynthia avoided looking at , embarrassed. When we stood up to change classes, she didn’t say a single word. She just left quickly, without looking back.
And I, standing there, could only stay with that strange and heavy feeling, which kept turning around in my mind. What had just happened? What did it all an? I didn’t know.
***
Dungeon exploration test. The na is enough to indicate what it is about. The atmosphere around us was bustling, full of murmurs from all sides. Now, we were in the deepest part of the NOVA training grounds, where the portal to the dungeon was located. It was a secluded place, surrounded by a mithril wall, one of the most resistant minerals in the world. The portal, guarded 24 hours a day by an elite squad, left no room for doubt: nothing could enter or leave without the express permission of those in charge. Rumors said that any creature that managed to escape the dungeon was instantly exterminated, without rcy. The surveillance was so strict that you could almost hear the rumble of the guards’ weapons, ready to finish off any threat without hesitation.
Today the day of the test had finally arrived; our objective was to train in this E-rank dungeon.
The teacher in charge of supervising us, a forr rcenary who served in so battles, but his main job was to explore dungeons, looked at us seriously. His face, weathered by years of experience, reflected a mixture of respect for the place and a silent warning not to underestimate it.
"This particular dungeon," he began, his deep voice echoing among us, "is full of undead." From skeletons to ghouls, all of them low-ranking, but equally dangerous if not taken seriously. It’s an ideal place to test your skills, but don’t let your guard down. Even low-ranking enemies can surprise you if you’re not prepared
As the master spoke, a wave of excitent ran through the group, it seems that nerves did not exist in this world. It seems that since it was an E-rank dungeon it was relatively safe, the idea of facing such creatures was not intimidating. But only I knew that this experience would change our lives, so would not return.
The low-rank dungeon was a small part of the vast NOVA complex, but it did not fail to have its own eerie atmosphere. The entrance to a green-hued portal adorned the entire surrounding environnt, usually its glow indicated the level of complexity, the darker the tone of the portal, the higher its rank. Although to be on the safe side a mana ter was used.
The master gave us one last warning before entering the dungeon.
"Rember, you are not here to play, you are here to learn. If sothing goes wrong, safety cos first. Don’t do anything rash."
He waved us in with his hand and, one by one, we began to enter, our hearts beating in ti with our steps. As we passed through the portal, a slight dizziness ran through . I looked around but didn’t find any of the students, it seed like they had been transported at random.
As I walked, the landscape soon welcod , transforming clearly in my mind. The air was heavy and seed to be impregnated with a dense, cold humidity, a light layer of mist covered the surroundings as if the sun was trapped between the clouds. This place itself was a new world. So theorized that it was connected to another dinsion, but no one could prove it. The place I ended up at was a forest plagued by twisted trees, whose trunks coiled like snakes. In the distance, a row of dilapidated houses rose like ghosts, without life or hope, scattered in specific locations. Soon my eyes caught sight of a mansion in the distance, or at least that’s what it looked like from this distance. I couldn’t see its structure, but it was certainly similar to a castle, standing on a lonely hill. Its dark silhouette stood out against the greyish sky, and its broken windows looked like empty eyes watching.
The atmosphere was so oppressive, so macabre, I knew that the boss monster was located in that place, there was no doubt. Even though I walked with extre care, the ground beneath my feet creaked, as if it couldn’t bear the silence that welcod us. The town, although empty, could sotis see shadows, fleeting figures that disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Suddenly, as I turned a corner, I saw them. I couldn’t believe what my eyes were seeing. Seeing them in reality was completely different from the description in the novels. Three skeletons walked in a row, moving with their joints in a frightening way that was alien to all logic. They weren’t just remains, no; Sothing else animated them, a dark and sinister force kept them moving. Each one carried weapons, so wielding rusty swords, while others, more worn, barely held broken helts, from which hung remains of chains. Their bones creaked with each step, echoing loudly in the air, seeing them gave goosebumps.
The wind whispered through the trees, just yet somber as if nature itself refused to accept that these dead wandered, stripped of everything that once made them human. I thought that, if I did not move cautiously, they could also notice my presence, since although they did not seem to notice my proximity, their empty eyes observed from sowhere deep, as if waiting for sothing.
Without waiting for a single word I touched my right bracelet at that mont, with a single movent, a slight golden flash ran across the surface, transforming it before my eyes. The bracelet extended, taking on a solid, tallic form, a shining golden gun, whose barrel seed to shine with pure energy, mana radiating slightly from it, giving it a more elegant touch
Without hesitation, I aid at the three skeletons walking in front of , their shadows lengthening under the dim surrounding light. The stillness that had reigned was disturbed by the roar of three projectiles.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The magic bullets flew through the air, leaving faint golden flashes, so fast and fleeting that they seed to contour the surroundings. Each shot hit the skulls of the dead with almost divine precision, and, upon contact, the energy contained in the projectiles released a magical explosion. The bones splintered, the skull of each skeleton disintegrated, and the magic that kept them moving fell apart as if it had never existed. A golden dust slid from my gun, gently descending into the air, and what had once been skeletal creatures crumbled into broken bone remains.
The echo of the gunfire faded and I knew I had to move quickly if I didn’t want to be ambushed, but the place was now eerily silent, as if the forest itself was holding its breath. After a few seconds the gun returned to its original form, the golden glow fading into the gloom. There was no celebration in my victory, only a feeling that I had done what was necessary to survive, but sothing larger, darker, still lurked in this forgotten place.
With the skeletons reduced to scattered fragnts, I found myself surrounded by the thick mist again, wondering if this would be the last threat I would encounter or if there was sothing else waiting in the shadows, far beyond what my eyes could see.
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