When they finally arrived at the Astley castle, a servant gestured for them to follow.
The corridor swallowed them whole.
Stone walls stretched on both sides, tall and bare, lantern light flickering softly. With every step, the sound of their own footsteps echoed back at them—too loud, too clear. No one spoke. No one dared to.
Elias felt his shoulders tense. So quiet…Rowan instinctively pulled his scarf higher, eyes flicking to every passing archway. Mira kept her gaze forward, lips pressed thin, counting steps without realizing it.
After a while, the servant finally broke the silence.
"Remember this path," he said calmly, not slowing his pace. "From now onwards, no one will guide you. And do not wander around the castle."
The words landed heavily.
Selene swallowed. From now on…Tessa straightened her posture, pretending she wasn't nervous. Of course. Easy. Just don't get lost in a noble's castle. Simple. Liora quietly nodded to herself, committing the turns and corners to memory.
They stopped in front of a tall wooden door.
The servant reached out and opened it.
The room beyond was unexpectedly… ordinary.
Spacious, yes—but not intimidating.
A soft breath escaped Mira before she could stop herself. "Ah…"
Inside, a small desk with a padded chair stood neatly arranged. Beneath the desk was a compartment clearly meant for books and papers. On a larger table nearby, stacks of paper and books had already been prepared—one set for each of them.
Elias' eyes widened slightly. For… us? Already?
They looked around.
More tables. Aligned. Orderly.
"…This is," Selene muttered under her breath, "a real classroom."
At the front of the room stood a large blackboard. In front of it, a wide desk and a sturdy chair—clearly the teacher's seat.
Tessa let out a quiet huff of air. "So this is where we're going to be tortured by letters," she whispered.
Mira shot her a look. "Behave."
"I am behaving," Tessa whispered back. "Internally screaming is still behavior."
Rowan said nothing, but his gaze lingered on the blackboard. Learning… starts here.
The servant cleared his throat, pulling their attention back.
He reached into a small box he had brought with him and began handing something out. One by one, each of them received a tiny stick-like tool, slim and cool to the touch, with a sharp point at one end.
Selene tilted hers. "Is this… a needle?"
"A magic pen," the servant corrected calmly.
That earned him their full attention.
"It has only one function," he continued. "Unlimited ink. No matter the surface—paper, wood, stone—it will write smoothly."
Selene's eyes widened. "Stone too…?"
Rowan glanced down at the stone floor. So even mistakes can be permanent…
The servant then handed out a second item—small, plain, and rectangular.
"An eraser tool," he said. "It will erase only the writings made by the magic pen. Nothing else."
Mira nodded slowly. Controlled. Thought out.
"The pen is powered by a magic stone embedded within," the servant added. "It will function only inside this classroom. When you return home, you may use a normal ink bottle and fountain pen."
Liora held both items close to her chest. Unlimited ink… so I don't have to worry about wasting it.
Tessa grinned, excitement bubbling through. "So we can write as much as we want?"
"As much as you are capable of learning," the servant replied flatly.
Selene leaned in and whispered, "Guess no excuses left."
Mira whispered back, "None."
Rowan tightened his grip around the pen. No guidance. Unlimited ink. A room meant only for learning.His chest felt strangely heavy—and strangely steady.
The servant took a step back, gaze sweeping across them.
"This room," he said, "is where your foundation begins."
No one spoke.
But in the quiet that followed, their thoughts raced—nerves tangled with resolve,fear brushing against hope—as each of them realized the same thing.
They took their seats one by one.
Chairs scraped softly against the floor as papers were drawn out and books opened. The room settled into a careful, expectant quiet.
Elias flipped open his book first.
His brow furrowed almost immediately.
"…What is this?"
The pages were filled with symbols—loops, sharp angles, lines crossing in unfamiliar ways. To his eyes, they looked like nothing more than chaotic scribbles. No spacing, he recognized. No patterns he could grasp.
Selene leaned over from the side and squinted. "I thought it was just me."
Mira frowned, turning a page. None of this makes sense…Liora's fingers tightened around the edge of her book. So this is what illiteracy feels like.
Rowan stared at the page in silence, a strange pressure building in his chest. I can't read a single thing.
The servant observed them for a moment, expression unchanged.
Seeing their reactions, he turned and walked toward the door. "Your instructor will arrive soon."
The door closed behind him with a soft but final click.
They were alone.
For a while, no one spoke.
Only the faint sound of pages being turned, then turned back again.
Tessa broke first. "Well," she whispered, forcing a smile, "at least we know we're all equally hopeless."
Elias let out a small, nervous laugh. "I was afraid it was only me."
Selene rested her chin on her hand. "If this is the starting point… I guess that means it's really the beginning."
Mira nodded. "Which means we're allowed to not know things. For now."
That seemed to ease something in the room.
Rowan finally spoke, quiet but steady. "We just… start from zero."
Liora smiled faintly at that.
Then—
The door opened.
Their murmurs died instantly.
A young man stepped inside, closing the door behind him with practiced calm.
He looked to be around twenty-five. His clothes were refined but modest—clean lines, neutral colors, well-fitted without being ostentatious. His hair was neatly combed back, not a strand out of place, and thin-rimmed spectacles rested on the bridge of his nose. His posture was straight, shoulders relaxed, hands steady.
Everything about him—from the way he walked to the way his eyes calmly took in the room—screamed scholar.
He paused, gaze sweeping over each of them, not judging—measuring.
Then he smiled.
"Good morning."
His voice was gentle, clear, and unhurried.
"I am Albrecht Lucien Valerius," he said, inclining his head slightly. "I will be your instructor."
A noble. Three names.
The weight of that settled quietly.
"Before we begin," Albrecht continued, "I would like to know who I'll be teaching."
He gestured to the first desk. "Please. Introduce yourselves. Name, and whatever else you feel is appropriate."
Elias stiffened, then stood up a little too fast. "I-I'm Elias. Elias Harper. I'll do my best."
Selene grinned and followed. "Selene. I'm good at remembering things. Probably."
Tessa crossed her arms confidently. "Tessa. I don't like sitting still, but I'll try."
Mira rose next, composed. "Mira. I prefer understanding over memorizing."
Liora stood last, voice soft but clear. "Liora. I want to learn properly."
Rowan remained seated, then gave a small nod. "Rowan."
Albrecht listened to each of them carefully, eyes attentive, as if filing their names away.
"Very well," he said once they were done. "Then let us begin."
He turned to the blackboard.
"Our first lesson," he said, picking up a piece of chalk, "is to recognize alphabets."
White lines appeared on the board as he wrote.
"This symbol," he said, tapping the board, "represents the sound aah."
He wrote another.
"This one produces beh."
Another. Another.
The room grew quiet again—but this time, it was different.
"This is not something to memorize blindly," Albrecht continued. "Listen to the sound. Feel how your mouth moves. Connect it to the symbol."
More symbols filled the board.
"When these are combined," he said, drawing lines between them, "they create new sounds."
A pause.
"And those sounds," he finished, turning back to them, "become words."
Elias leaned forward without realizing it.Mira's pen hovered, then moved.Liora's eyes shone with focus.Rowan followed every stroke on the board.
Unlimited ink flowed across their pages.
Slowly—carefully—The world began to take shape in lines and sound.
The lesson continued.
One sound after another.One symbol after another.
Time slipped by almost unnoticed as the blackboard filled, was erased, and filled again. Pens scratched steadily, magic ink flowing without pause. Mistakes vanished under the eraser tool, leaving no stains behind—only cleaner lines the second time around.
Before anyone realized it, the light outside the windows had shifted.
Albrecht paused mid-sentence, glanced toward the wall clock, and gave a small nod.
"We will finish it here."
Several shoulders slumped at once—half in relief, half in disbelief.
"It will be a break for around three hours," he continued calmly. "You may go out and have lunch, or remain here for self-study. After three hours, we will hold a review class. If you have any problems, I will clarify them."
He closed his book, then looked at them properly—really looked at them.
"Before I leave," he said, voice steady, "there is something I wish to say."
The room stilled.
"I normally teach noble children. However, now that I am here, I do not despise you for being commoners. Nor will I look down on you."
Selene held her breath.Mira's grip tightened slightly around her pen.
"I believe education is one of the basic rights of all people," Albrecht continued. "And I was not cheap to hire."
That earned a few startled blinks.
"I will do my best to teach you," he said evenly. "But if you slack off and learn nothing—do not set foot in my class."
A brief pause.
"See you after the break."
He inclined his head once and left, the door closing softly behind him.
For a moment—
Silence.
Then Tessa exhaled loudly. "Wow. That was… intense."
"But honest," Mira said, nodding.
Elias stared down at his paper, eyes wide. "Did you hear that? Not cheap to hire. How much do you think that means?"
Selene leaned back in her chair. "Enough that I'm suddenly very motivated."
Rowan lifted his book slightly. "I can… recognize this now."
Liora leaned over, peering at the page. "That one makes the aah sound, right?"
"Yes," Rowan said quietly. "And when it's next to this one, it changes."
Selene snapped her fingers. "Oh! That explains why this line here sounded different."
Elias let out a soft laugh. "They're not scribbles anymore."
He traced a symbol with his finger. "I can't read words yet, but… I know what some of these mean."
Mira allowed herself a small smile. "That's progress."
Tessa stretched, standing up. "Alright, scholars. Lunch first. If we starve, we won't learn anything."
No one argued.
They gathered their books, carefully this time, and filed out together. The corridor no longer felt as oppressive as before. Their steps were lighter.
Outside, the promise of warmth and food waited.
And for the first time, the strange symbols in their minds didn't feel like walls—
But doors.
They ate lunch together.
Nothing fancy—warm soup, bread, something simple—but the conversation was anything but quiet. Sounds and symbols crept into their talk without them realizing it.
"This one makes the beh sound, right?""No, no, that's when it's alone—see, when it's paired, it shifts.""Oh… so that's why the line bends like that."
By the time they returned to the classroom, the scribbles in their books felt… familiar.
The review class passed more slowly.
Some asked questions—hesitant at first, then bolder.
Elias raised his hand twice, cheeks slightly red each time.Mira asked fewer questions, but sharper ones.Selene listened with narrowed eyes, occasionally murmuring an answer before the teacher spoke.Liora asked softly, but never about the same thing twice.Rowan mostly listened, absorbing everything in silence.Tessa only asked once—but when she did, it was something none of them had thought of.
Albrecht clarified patiently. He rewrote symbols, repeated sounds, corrected posture, and corrected grip. No impatience. No condescension.
When the final explanation ended, he closed the book on his desk.
"That will be all for today."
They froze for a moment—then relaxed all at once.
"The first day is always the hardest," Albrecht said calmly. "Tomorrow, we build on what you learned today. Do not forget it."
With that, he left.
They stayed seated for a few breaths longer.
"…So," Selene said at last, "we survived."
"And learned something," Mira added.
Elias smiled down at his page, tracing a symbol he now understood. "I can read parts of this."
Liora nodded softly. "Me too."
Rowan closed his book carefully. The beginning, he thought.
They filed out together, tired—but not lost.
Not anymore.
What had once been meaningless lines had gained sound.What had once been silence had gained shape.
And with unlimited ink in their hands,The first marks of a new path had been written.