Clothes were thrown around like someone had gone through my entire room, the same book I had closed earlier lay open on my desk.
I was sitting on the ground, my back leaning on the wall. The clothes I was wearing felt suffocating.
"What?..."
Why am I in my room? Even transportation magic isn't as silent and swift as this.
I had cleaned my room before going to meet Denis and Penelope, yet it's like this. Someone must've come in and searched for something.
Though, my room offered nothing of interest, at least to my knowledge. I doubt the academy also carried routine inspections. Especially not ones this messy.
My room seemed... familiar. Of course my room would feel familiar, but I wasn't talking about that. It felt more like I had seen my room like this before.
I couldn't put my finger on it, but something about the way the clothes were thrown around ticked me off.
I shook my head, it was likely nothing.
The book on my desk was open on the same page I had stopped reading at. I was sure I had closed it before.
Nothing of note was on it, it was just a magic theory book.
I swallowed. Just what is happening today?
Did I dream all that?
*Knock Knock*
Sounds of a fist hitting my door gently echoed in the room.
"Kyle?"
Denis.
I got up quickly and straightened my now disheveled clothes and hair. Before opening the door, I looked into the mirror.
Dark circles hung beneath my eyes, and my hair looked like I had just walked out of a fight, strands sticking out in every direction.
I smiled bitterly and opened the door for Denis.
Denis seemed to be taken aback by my new look.
"You missed lunch."
I raised an eyebrow.
Missed lunch?
Regardless, I answered.
"I went to the cafeteria, but no one was there. Not you, not Penelope, not a single student. Even the staff weren't there. What do you mean I missed lunch?" My voice was extremely hoarse as if I hadn't said anything in a few days. It even cracked on some words.
Denis's eyes twitched faintly at my remark.
"Sure... Just don't be too late, Penelope is waiting."
And with that, he left me alone again.
Why was he acting so strange though?
Did I really dream all of that? Can dreams leave behind pain?
...He said the same things he had said in the dream.
There was a small difference, but the idea was exactly the same.
Nevertheless, if I wanted to know more about that 'dream', I needed to go to the library. There might be some books that hold some clues on it. Browsing the illusion magic section should be my biggest concern.
Not with my current look, however.
I wet my hair a bit and cleaned my face. Once I no longer looked like a 40 year old man drowning in debt, I was satisfied.
The hallway was filled to the brim with students, their conversations drew an unnerving contrast to the deathly silence of my dream.
My body shivered a bit.
Going to meet Penelope and Denis would be of more importance than investigating what happened to me. Books can't walk, but time doesn't wait.
Our next lecture was in 5 minutes, not enough time to research about phenomena in the first place. Also not enough time to talk about everything that happened yesterday.
The strange actions of my mana intrigued me, especially after the priest's remarks.
Broken mana, huh.
It sounded almost novel. Like something out of a book. The main character went through arduous training, then his mana started acting weird.
I doubt the state of my mana was caused by the training. It was most likely awakened by the extreme physical pressure I was under.
It also seemed pretty nifty. If my dream was to be taken as the truth, of course.
I didn't know whether to be grateful to the 6th circle mage for torturing us yesterday or not. He awakened my talent, but I still dreaded having to meet him again today.
Denis was waiting for me by the cafeteria door. A couple students sent him inquisitive gazes, but it didn't look like anyone wanted to approach him.
Now that I thought about it, it was stupid to even go to the cafeteria. Denis and Penelope weren't dumb enough to discuss things like that in public.
Denis gestured with his head for me to follow him.
I hesitated for a moment before stepping to his side.
"Denis," I said, keeping my voice low. "Has your mana been acting… strange since yesterday's training?"
He stopped walking.
Just for a second.
Then he turned to me, brow furrowing. "Strange how?"
That pause made my chest tighten.
"No reason," I said quickly. "Mine just twitched a bit. Thought I'd ask."
Denis studied me in silence. His gaze lingered on the dark circles beneath my eyes longer than it should have.
"You look exhausted," he finally said. "If you force mana while half-asleep, it'll misbehave. Especially after training like that."
"…So nothing unusual happened to you?" I pressed.
"No." He answered too quickly. "Nothing at all."
The conversation should've ended there.
Yet the way he resumed walking, as if nothing had happened, made my stomach churn.
"Get more sleep," Denis added without looking back. "You're overthinking things."
Penelope was waiting for us in the library.
It was a good place to hold a private conversation in, considering that it's split into areas with soundproof magic.
She was sitting at the far end of the first-year's section of the library. It didn't even seem necessary to sit there, since the entire library was pretty much empty.
Penelope looked up the moment we entered her section.
"... You're late." She said, then paused. "You look terrible."
Denis sighed. "I told him that already."
"I didn't sleep well." A quiet groan left my mouth. This was the third time someone mentioned my appearance.
Penelope didn't look convinced. She studied me for a moment longer then sighed.
She opened her mouth, obviously wanting to say something, but no words came out.
"What is it?" Denis asked.
"...Do you get this feeling that today is heavy?" Penelope looked confused at her own words.
"In what way?" My chest tightened a bit at her words. Did she also experience the dream?
Heavy...? That implied she didn't remember the dream.
"It sounds ridiculous, but I have this strange sense that something already happened today." Her eyes stayed glued to my figure, like she was addressing me. "It's almost like be-"
"The lecture is about to start, let's go together and discuss yesterday later." Denis shifted his weight.
My eyes twitched at the interruption.
It didn't feel deliberate, more so that he wasn't paying attention to what Penelope was saying.
I was still interested in what Penelope had to say.
"Yeah, I don't know where I was going with that." Penelope said quietly.
As she stood up, she glanced toward the window.
She shook her head almost immediately after.
"When do you think the next... 'meeting' with the mage is?" I asked on the way, wanting to at least get something before the lecture.
A few students looked at us, but their gazes didn't linger for long.
We were walking by the walls of the hallway.
"Didn't you get the mail? It's at 5." Penelope looked at me strangely.
My steps paused.
"What mail?" Did we all receive a letter and I didn't know?
"I got a letter telling me to come to that same clearing in the forest at 5PM everyday. Penelope also received one. Did you not?" Denis said, brushing past a few students.
Can't a letter be used as evidence?
"Why don't we just send that letter to the student affairs office? If they find out that we were kidnapped by some high circle mages, that would cause quite the uproar." I looked at both Denis and Penelope.
Denis paused mid stride and turned back to me.
*Bang*
His palm planted against the wall to my right, before he leaned to my ear.
"You might cause a scene for a day or two," he whispered. "But who do you think they'll believe? Three first-year students, or an eighth-circle mage? He loses reputation. We lose our lives."
He got away from my face and acted like that was all just an accident.
A few students in the hallway whistled at the scene.
Penelope chuckled and walked past us.
A smirk grew on Denis's face, contrasting my ashen expression.
He was really good at acting.