Humans fear many things.
Darkness, insects, animals, the depths of the ocean…
Death, hunger, disease.
But in this age, what people feared most could be summarized in a single word: Monsters.
As the academy approached sunset, it grew quieter… but today the silence was not "normal." Today, the building felt like it was breathing.
When Eren, Raphael, and Kayra entered the long corridor of the dormitory floor, the white wavy patterns on their black robes seemed to move slowly. Their hoods were long, the fabric thin but heavy. Gray-white wave patterns on black spiraled down the ribs; it was less a robe and more a piece of shadow.
Kayra whistled. "I didn't want to go to the ball. But these robes changed my mind."
Raphael touched the edge of the robe; the fabric was ice cold. Since the robe was loose, no one could see the spear he carried underneath.
Raphael: "Is this the robe worn for the ball? I thought something more colorful would be worn at the ball…"
Eren said nothing. He looked at the patterns of the robe. Those white waves woven into it… suddenly reminded him of that dark city in his inner world. Lunar's smile… he had wandered there alone for weeks. What was that thing that brought Eren into his inner world? The shadow he took in had only stood motionless. When would he start casting spells? But these were not the things that were really bothering him. He was seeing things he shouldn't normally be able to see, but how? He knew only one person who could do this. And then there were the rattling chains in the Cage; that cage in his inner world and the thing inside it.
When he took off the robe's hood, he noticed something. The fabric was unnecessarily heavy. He tried to pull and stretch it with his hand. After finding the seam, he tried again from there, but it wouldn't tear.
Eren frowned. "This fabric… is not normal fabric."
Kayra immediately jumped in: "It's clearly Dusk's work. The man looked like he could beat up three people with one hand even while performing rituals. He must have enchanted the robe."
Eren put the hood back up. Half of his face remained in shadow. Raphael flinched slightly when he saw this.
Raphael: "You look very different when you stand in the shadow, man. Like… I don't know… not normal."
Eren: "I'm not normal anyway."
Eren and Raphael started laughing, but there was a slight hesitation in Raphael's laughter. Eren adjusted the robe, closing the fasteners. The inside of the hood seemed to swallow sound. He could barely hear his own breath.
Kayra asked while adjusting his robe: "Are we going? Azel said everyone had to gather in the main hall before the ball."
Eren turned to the door. For some reason, a strange unease passed through him. It was as if someone, someone very old, or something very old, was watching them.
Lunar's voice drifted into his neck: "Yes, yes, this thing… is beautiful. It makes you look cooler. But there's a problem, Eren. This path today… won't go straight. Don't ask me how I know."
Eren tensed his shoulder.
Eren (to himself):Shut up.
Lunar laughed.
When the trio stepped into the corridor, the lights were burning in an orange tone.
Kayra yawned. "Man, this ball thing seems ridiculous to me. We did a ritual, killed a werewolf, and now we're going to dress up and dance?"
Raphael: "It's an academy tradition. A night to welcome the newcomers and relax for the upper classes."
Kayra: "I don't know how to relax. I've never relaxed in my life. It was already decided that I would be a hunter when I was born. My father was a retired hunter. That's how I learned that chain magic. Although, after this ritual, I wonder how powerful I can make that spell."
Eren: "Let's keep going. Someone is waiting for me at the ball."
The corridor continued straight. Normally, there would be observation windows after a certain point… 1 step, 2 steps… 20 steps. Eren realized something was wrong. There were no windows, instead, there were walls of black stone. There were no lights, no torches, the floor was wet. There were no wall carvings.
The corridor… was the same. But at the same time, it was very different. The same stones. The same shadows. The same length. It was as if the corridor repeated itself as they advanced. Like an endless loop, as if they were walking on a Mobius strip.
Eren stopped. Raphael bumped into his shoulder. Eren stumbled forward, and just as he was about to fall, Raphael caught him by the shoulder.
Raphael: "What happened—"
Eren: "I don't know, but we should have left the corridor by now."
At that moment. Clack. The door at the end of the corridor closed by itself. With a dull, heavy sound.
Kayra flinched.
Kayra: "The door closed, man!"
Eren turned around. He ran towards the door with all his might. Stress and panic were evident from the sound of his feet hitting the floor. The fear that was slowly building up in the air of the environment began to be felt. Eren pushed the door. But the door didn't move. It didn't budge an inch or a millimeter.
Raphael began to grumble. "Come on… is something happening again?"
Then the lights ahead… one by one… hissed and went out. The darkness was not momentary, it settled in a suffocating way. Their pupils felt the weight of the darkness.
Raphael's voice trembled: "Eren… the lights are completely gone. At least we could see in front of us a moment ago."
Kayra: "This isn't a joke, is it? Is one of the 2nd-years trying to scare us?"
Eren didn't speak. But his eyes could now see more clearly in the dark. The shadows… were moving.
Lunar whispered: "I told you. Right now, the first thing you need to do is stay calm. Take me out of my sheath, hold me with both hands. Hold me tight, close your eyes, imagine burning flames, and say ignitium. Did you understand?"
Eren did as Lunar said, took him out of his sheath, and held him tightly with both hands. He closed his eyes.
Eren: "Ignitium!"
The sword burst into flames. Bright blue flames allowed Eren to see his surroundings. Raphael and Kayra came towards the light.
Kayra: "That's a cool trick. So, what's our plan now?"
At the entrance of the ballroom, Leila sighed while adjusting her hood. Everyone knew she had been standing there for a long time. Shirou was next to Leila. Water bubbles were coming out of his pipe.
Leila: "Where is Eren…"
Shirou: "He's not going to die, he'll come. He must be stuck somewhere. He's not going to ditch you, and besides, attending the ball is mandatory. He'll definitely come here."
Shirou started walking away slowly. He was going towards Cain, Arlo, Milo, Gus, Nicholas, and the other team members.
The sound of someone's footsteps began to approach, heavy and gentle steps. They had sprayed a nice, spicy perfume, the scent neither too light nor too heavy. His robe had a blue-gold cracked pattern. It shone as if it were refracting light. As if he was the embodiment of grace, kindness, and light. A true Lantern.
Dean: "Are you waiting for someone?"
Leila didn't turn to him, she continued to look ahead. There was disappointment in her voice.
Leila: "Yes. But he hasn't arrived yet."
Dean took a step closer. His eyes were serious, but as if he was hiding something. He leaned towards Leila's ear.
Dean: "I hope… you're waiting for the right person."
Leila looked at Dean's face for the first time. She noticed the brightness in Dean's eyes.
Leila: "What was your name?"
Dean smiled slightly. "My name is Dean Guilliman. I'm a close friend of Eren's. He's not, how should I put it, the best in these kinds of matters."
Leila: "Did you see Eren?"
The smile on Dean's face completely dropped for a moment. "No. I didn't see him. Maybe I shouldn't have to. I even doubt he'll come here."
A chill covered Leila's inside. Dean's voice was suddenly… colder than she knew.
At the very end of the corridor, a sound ticked. Eren, Kayra, and Raphael were sitting around Lunar, who was stuck in the ground. The shadows around them were stretching and shrinking. It was as if something was watching them. They had started to get used to this, as these things had been happening non-stop for a few hours, if you could call it getting used to it.
A metallic sound. As if something had suddenly fallen onto the stone floor from above.
Raphael: "Man… man, what's going on!?"
Eren looked at the floor. Among the stones… there was a large, rusty key. Eren bent down. The moment he touched the key… The wall at the end of the stone floor cracked slightly. The stones were shifting, the ground was shaking. The stone bricks slowly folded back, revealing a door. A blood-like liquid was flowing from the gap under the door. Seeing this, Eren pulled his sword out of the ground and held it tightly with his right hand. As if this blood-like liquid wasn't enough, a red smoke also began to rise from the door.
Then a lid, a stone door, slowly opened.
Kayra backed away. "I'm not going into that damn room."
Raphael: "The door is closed anyway, we have no other choice."
Eren held the key. He put his hand on the edge of the door. Cold air came from inside. The smell… Old. Dark. Chain. The smell of the cage.
Eren put the key into the lock. He slowly turned the key. The door opened heavily with a creak. Eren stepped inside the door. Raphael and Kayra followed him.
It wasn't dark inside. It was gray. A fog-like gray. When they reached the center, the fog around them began to recede. Kayra was starting to panic, breathing quickly.
What appeared was a giant cage. But it was empty. There were no cracks. Its door was open. Eren suddenly held his breath. He had seen this cage… in his inner world. The same sound of chains. The same smell of iron. No, it wasn't the same, it was similar but not the same. The energy radiating from this cage and inside it couldn't even be compared to the one in his inner world.
Kayra: "What is this?"
Raphael: "Why is it empty?"
Lunar whispered, his voice serious for the first time: "This is not the world, Eren. This is… a reflection. The cage is somewhere else. But its reflection is here. To escape, it's enough to use the key again and open the cage. If the cage's lock is opened, the reflection disappears. But you also release the thing inside the cage."
Kayra raised his voice in fear: "Are they going to suffocate us here, what's going on!?"
At that moment, all the lights exploded. Eren put the key into the cage's lock and opened the cage's lock. A white flash. A ringing that burst their ears.
Then— The corridor. The normal corridor. The windows, the lights, the stone patterns were all in place. Eren, Kayra, and Raphael were breathless.
Raphael: "Was what just happened… real?"
Kayra: "I swear I'm not doing any more rituals…"
Eren didn't speak. The rusty key in his hand was gone. As if it had never been there.
Eren: "Come on, hurry up, we have to make it to the ball!"