A world without you.
-Next weekend... There's going to be a memorial service for the victims of the attack.
Victims, and a memorial service.
As Golden Boy uttered those words, my dazed mind snapped back to attention.
It felt as if someone had struck the back of my head.
Behind the lingering, dull headache came a crushing sense of reality.
Had I been so consumed by my own misfortune?
I had forgotten.
The fact that a tragedy worthy of being called such had occurred here as well.
-The number of students injured in this attack is 138, and the number of students who died is 5...
Students had died.
Five young lives, cut short.
During the attack, they had stepped forward to defend the back gate from the encroaching monsters.
Their necks were severed by the sudden appearance of Recus.
I heard they were promising students, the hope of the Academy.
Indeed, they must have been confident in their abilities to stand in the face of chaos to protect others.
The cruel irony was this:
They were strong enough to shield the weak behind them, but not strong enough to protect themselves from the truly powerful.
"Haa..."
A sigh escaped my lips.
Indescribable emotions swirled within me.
Lost in thought, a scene flashed before my eyes, a memory tucked away in a corner of my mind.
-Squelch...
The sound of flesh being ripped apart.
Followed by a dull thud.
As I looked up at the sound of something heavy hitting the ground, I saw five heads, cleanly severed.
Death, instantaneous and absolute.
Back then, stopping Recus had been my priority.
But the crimson blood that had stained the ground that day... it was an undeniable tragedy.
Nausea welled up inside me.
Unable to bear the churning in my stomach, I took a long drag from the Deathweed I was holding.
"Haaa..."
I had forgotten.
The original work was a tragedy.
A tragedy where countless people died with each passing incident.
This world was never kind to us.
I had already experienced it firsthand.
I lost my mother before my very eyes, and then my master, the only adult I could rely on.
My jaw clenched involuntarily.
"......How foolish."
To have lost such precious things, and yet, to be lulled into such a false sense of security.
Self-loathing washed over me.
I rubbed my face with my hands, trying to gather my thoughts.
Depressing thoughts threatened to consume me, but I pushed them back.
Now was not the time to wallow in weakness.
Self-pity wouldn't solve anything.
I would not lose anyone else so helplessly, not like my mother, not like my master.
I needed strength.
I needed the means to protect those within my care.
Putting down the Deathweed, I pushed myself off the sofa.
"...I need to move up the schedule."
A quiet murmur to myself.
There were so many things I needed to prepare.
In order to overcome the huge waves that were to come, it was necessary to build a breakwater strong enough not to be shaken by the ordeal.
I opened my mouth.
"Rachel, can you get my coat ready?"
"Are you going out?"
"Yes, there's someone I need to see."
I replied with a faint smile.
To ensure the smooth execution of my plans, there was a mountain I had to climb.
"...Korn."
Korn Ronezia.
The Headmistress of Reynolds Academy, and the war hero who ended the civil war ten years ago.
And the woman my master loved.
I had to bring her to my side.
***
-Whooosh...
The wind howled fiercely.
Outside the tightly shut window, white snow fell in a blizzard-like fury.
Spring was just around the corner, yet it was a strangely cold day.
The season raged on relentlessly.
As if to say this was the last snowfall of winter.
Oblivious to the harsh weather, a woman lay shrouded in darkness.
"..."
Her name was Korn Lonezia.
A woman with captivating red hair and golden eyes.
She lay on her bed, still as death.
Not a single candle lit the room.
Only an impenetrable black filled the space.
In that space where one couldn't see even an inch ahead, Korn remained frozen, as if time itself had stopped.
The faint sound of breathing.
It was the only indication that she was still alive.
-Master, it's time to wake up.
-Even if you whine like that, it's no use. Today is the faculty meeting.
The woman was lost in a memory.
A past now shattered and beyond her grasp.
Her chest ached.
It felt as if thousands of heated needles were piercing her heart, but Korn didn't resist.
She simply accepted the pain.
-Master! Are you working?
-The cafeteria has a good menu today, shall we go together?
-I'm so tired because I slept so late yesterday. If you hadn't clung to me for another round last night, I would have gone to bed early... Ah! Ow! Why, why did you hit me?
-The weather is lovely. Shall we take a walk together?
A gentle voice echoed in her ears.
Korn closed her eyes.
It was a time when she felt like she was melting, like she had the sweetest candy in her mouth.
-I love you, Master.
A sweetness she wished would last forever.
But it didn't take long for that moment to be engulfed in black ink.
-Hello, Master.
-If you're reading this record... it means I'm already gone from this world.
Just as happiness had found her suddenly, so did misfortune.
-I don't know how my end came, but I apologize in advance.
-I wanted to stay by your side forever... but I guess wishes don't always come true.
-Please forgive your incompetent student, Master.
Was it because she had spent too many days in tears?
Now, even tears refused to come.
Only a soggy resignation remained in her lightless golden eyes.
-Please don't grieve for too long after I'm gone.
Korn choked back a sob at those piercing words.
They were cruel, but they were her student's last wish.
But she couldn't bring herself to fulfill it.
Because she didn't know how to live in a world without the one she loved, let alone not grieve.
The purple roses were quietly wilting.
Korn wished she could just disappear like that.
Light, sound, smell, texture... every fragment that made up the world felt meaningless.
"...The world without you is so gray, Lucas."
His name, a painful whisper.
The overwhelming sense of loss continued to drag her down.
Her pale lips moved silently.
"I'm tired."
She had lost the will to live.
It had been that way ever since he left.
But that didn't mean she hadn't tried.
To honor his last wish and move on from her grief, she had tried to immerse herself in her work at the Academy.
She had driven her broken self relentlessly.
She often stayed in her office until she nearly collapsed.
But even that couldn't last.
Because in the end, she couldn't even protect the Academy.
The attack three months ago.
The students were hurt.
The students her beloved cherished were hurt and killed.
In the end, she couldn't protect anything.
"I just want it to end... Forgive your powerless master."
Korn muttered, burying her face in her hands.
The pieces of her heart, painstakingly gathered, crumbled away with the cold winter wind.
She had truly decided to give up on life.
The woman who was once praised as the pinnacle of magic was now a broken shell, rotting away in a dark room.
She wished to be forgotten.
She wished for no one to find her.
She just wanted to wander the fields of her blissful past, slowly drowning in the sorrow she loved so much.
It was then, as she lay there enveloped in darkness, that she heard it.
-Knock, knock...
Someone was knocking on her locked front door.
The unfamiliar sound made her frown.
For a moment, annoyance flared at the intrusion on her solitude, but she quickly suppressed it.
Not many people knew where she lived now.
Just a few faculty members, at most.
Since she hadn't left her house in the past three months, rumors of her disappearance were circulating.
The woman forced her heavy body up.
'…Is it Professor Sharon again?'
It was around the time Professor Sharon usually visited with food.
If she didn't open the door, she would keep knocking for hours, just like last time.
It was better to show her face briefly and send her away.
Korn let out a small sigh.
She got out of bed, staggered for a moment, and then regained her balance as she walked towards the front door.
-Click, creek…
Her hand, devoid of energy, pushed the door open.
"I told you before, Sharon. Please stop coming here…"
Korn's voice was laced with a chill.
But she was soon cut short.
"Headmistress."
Because standing outside her door was a most unexpected visitor.
Hair the color of the night sky, eyes filled with fatigue, and dark circles that lent him a strangely alluring air of decadence.
Korn stared at him, her voice a whisper as she spoke his name.
"Student Raiden…?"
"It's been a while."
The boy bowed his head respectfully as their eyes met.
The student who had studied under Lucas stood before her now.
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I thought that it was finally back but it's just backed up chapters, sad
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