Kaelen woke up very slowly, feeling as if his head had been crushed under a great rock. A sharp, throbbing pain struck his skull harshly, making him press his temples with his fingers while gritting his teeth from the intensity of the ache. His breathing was ragged, heavy, and irregular, as if his soul had just woken from a violent struggle that hadn't yet ended.
He sat on the edge of the bed with great difficulty, and at that moment, everything stopped.
He looked around in bewilderment; the room was suspiciously clean, much cleaner than he remembered in his neglected memory. The dirty clothes that used to fill the corners had completely disappeared, the wooden floor seemed free of dust, the bed was neatly arranged, and even the air inside felt different—lighter and more pure. He stared at the corners of his room in silent amazement, as if a stranger had lived here and rearranged his life while he was unconscious.
He muttered to himself in a faint, astonished voice:
"What happened?"
He stood up, swaying slightly, as the headache still gnawed at his head. He had no perception of time; had hours passed? Or a whole day? His sense of time had completely evaporated. He headed toward the kitchen with shaky steps, and as soon as he crossed the threshold, his eyes widened with surprise.
On the wooden table, cakes were placed with extreme care, and beside them was a glass of fresh orange juice shining with a bright color. The table itself was clean and polished in a way he had never seen before.
"Did I get married while I was out or what?"
He muttered to himself with genuine wonder as he inspected the place.
"Who made all this beauty?"
Hardly had he finished his question when his stomach growled loudly, as if his belly was demanding him to stop asking and start satisfying his hunger. He returned to the next room, carried the juice and cakes, then sat on the kitchen chair and put the food in front of him. His eyes were still wandering around the house, unable to believe it; everything had changed.
He started eating quietly this time, without greed, as if his body was trying to absorb the idea that he was still alive and tasting bliss. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve, then stood up to explore the rest of the changes. Then he noticed something he hadn't expected; the door. It wasn't the worn-out door he knew.
He approached it slowly, finding a completely new door made of smooth, finely crafted black wood, without scratches or holes, sliding in its frame without a creak. He reached out and touched its cold, smooth surface.
"Did I sleep for just one day to wake up and find all this changed?"
He opened the door, and it slid with hardly a sound. He closed it behind him, then turned toward Hanabi and Namiro's house. The road under his feet seemed longer and more desolate than usual. He arrived and stood before their door, then knocked with steady thumps.
No answer.
He knocked a second time, then a third, and continued knocking for seven full times, but silence was the only answer. He lowered his hand slowly and stood with his head bowed before the silent door.
"I understand now."
He turned back, each step he took heavier than the last, and distress squeezed his heart. He thought deep down that the clash that happened made them decide to return to their original home and leave him alone. He thought bitterly that no one would talk to him anymore; that's how things always went for him; he ends up alone.
He reached his house, opened the door strongly and closed it violently behind him, expressing his suppressed anger. He entered his room and sat on the bed. The sadness he felt was silent and suffocating, as if the walls of the room were closing in on him.
"I will sleep now," he muttered while closing his eyes. "Then I'll wake up to do something with my life."
He lay on his bed and tried to escape into sleep, but suddenly, knocks echoed on the door. He opened his eyes suddenly, filled with surprise.
"In the middle of the night?!"
He said it while getting up with nervousness and anxiety. He left the room with quick steps and opened the door strongly to face whoever was outside, and there, he froze in his place like a stone statue. Hanabi and Namiro were standing before him, but in a way he had never seen before.
They were wearing very elegant noble clothes, designed with luxury and fine details. Behind them in the dark, a luxurious carriage appeared, made of polished white wood, pulled by a strong black horse whose eyes shone with a sharp glow under the moonlight. Kaelen's thinking stopped completely as he looked at this legendary scene.
Hanabi said quietly and softly:
"Do you want to come with us?"
Then she added with a smile, as if the matter was simple and natural:
"We will make you study at the Magic Academy."
Namiro couldn't help herself and said with challenge and fun:
"And I can fight you any time there!"
"Namiro!"
Hanabi shouted at her reproachfully, while Namiro laughed with indifference.
Kaelen opened his mouth to say something, then closed it, then words came out of him without thinking or hesitation:
"Yes, please."
The two girls smiled clearly, and Hanabi said while pointing toward the carriage:
"Come, ride with us."
Kaelen felt his heart leaping between his ribs from sheer excitement. He would meet new people, learn the secrets of magic; everything seemed like a beautiful dream he feared waking up from. Namiro said while laughing as she climbed the carriage:
"Don't be too happy, for in the academy there are people stronger than us by miles, but we won't study with you because we belong to a special guild we study in."
Hanabi laughed with her, then said while looking at him with interest:
"We will help you register as a member of our family."
Kaelen couldn't hide the glint in his eyes and his burning excitement, and asked eagerly:
"How much time will it take to get there?"
Namiro answered while arranging her seating:
"Nine hours."
Hanabi turned to the driver who was waiting in silence and said in a confident voice:
"To Arcanum peaks."
The man replied with reverence and awe:
"To hear is to obey."
The carriage moved, and Kaelen sat inside, his eyes shining with the glow of hope, while the sound of the wheels moved away from his old home to start a new journey he never imagined.