The sky above Velross looked bluer than usual. The sun was shining bright, birds chirping like they were singing a theme song for a perfect morning. The crisp air felt like it carried new hope.
But to Reina, something just felt… off. Too perfect. Too smooth.
It had been two weeks since that night. Since that old man became the sacrifice. Since his blood was used to draw the triangle symbol. Since the stone glowed and the dagger vanished into the portal that opened during that blood ritual.
And ever since then—miracles started to happen.
Reina's GPA skyrocketed. She could barely believe her eyes when she checked the academic portal. The class that almost made her drop out? Now a perfect score. One of her toughest professors was suddenly transferred to a different campus. No warning. No explanation.
Her freelance writing gigs, which barely got any clicks before, suddenly went viral. One short article comparing education systems in developing countries got shared by a public figure—and ended up being quoted on a popular podcast.
Overnight, her follower count exploded. Notifications flooded in nonstop. A major publishing company reached out, offering her a solo book deal. On-campus forums and social media were buzzing with her name like she was some kind of genius.
People started calling her "a young student with limitless potential."
But behind all of that, a voice kept whispering. Not from outside. From inside her head.
"See, Reina? You're getting what I promised you."
Then one day, a strange email landed in her school inbox. No sender. No subject. Just a link—to an elite academic forum. Rumor had it the forum was invite-only, reserved for professors and top researchers.
She signed up, half-joking.
Five minutes later: Accepted.
Her very first post got her flooded with compliments and discussion invites from respected professors.
She was even invited to be a guest speaker at a national academic event. Standing on a grand stage, under spotlights and applause, Reina felt confident. Powerful.
Until she looked out at the audience... and noticed a shadow in the corner. A dark, hooded figure with glowing red eyes. Just standing there. Staring at her.
She blinked—and it was gone.
Only a sudden chill lingered in the air.
Reina's life was getting better. Way better. But she was starting to see things—things that shouldn't exist.
Shadows that didn't match the direction of the light. Soft voices whispering in her ear late at night. Sometimes they weren't even outside—they came from inside her thoughts.
Dead animals in the campus garden… twitching. Turning their heads to look at her. Then collapsing again.
Mirrors started acting weird. In the campus bathroom, she stared at her reflection—blinked—and it didn't blink back. She smiled, but her reflection stayed completely expressionless.
One night, after coming home late from an event, Reina walked down a quiet hallway. The lights were flickering like they were about to burn out.
At the end of the hall—she saw herself.
Just standing there. Facing her. Head lowered.
Then the figure started walking away. Slowly. Still facing her direction—but the back of its body never turned.
No footsteps. No sound.
Reina called her friend, Mila. Begged her to come check. Anything to prove she wasn't hallucinating.
But no one picked up. And when she looked back down the hall…
The figure was gone.
The dagger was gone, too. Ever since the ritual, it had vanished from the center of the triangle symbol. She never actually saw it disappear. It was just… gone. Like something had taken it.
She searched everywhere—every drawer, under the mattress, even tore apart her shelves. Didn't sleep at all that night. She stayed up, desperate to find it.
But by the next day, the panic faded. Strangely… so did the memory of the energy stone. The one the demon wanted.
Now? She couldn't even picture what it looked like.
All that was left was the hunger. The ambition. And the whispers.
"You still have so much left to achieve, don't you? You're not done yet."
Zareth's voice. The demon's whisper.
Not long after, someone from a student social org approached Reina. They wanted her to be the national spokesperson for their literacy campaign. Huge opportunity.
But there was one competitor—Sella. The idealistic, honest girl that everyone loved for her sincerity.
At first, Reina wanted to play fair. She even wrote her speech early and practiced every night.
Then the voice returned—closer this time.
"There's a way to make her drop out... it only takes one incident."
That night, some fake photos smearing Sella started spreading from an anonymous account. No proof. No digital trace. Even the IP address pointed to a foreign server.
But in the mirror, Reina's reflection grinned. Wide. Too wide.
The next morning, Sella dropped out.
Reina won.
She stood at the podium. The world cheered.
And on campus… she started seeing things. People's faces looked like they were made of wax. Their eyes too wide. Their smiles too stretched. But only for a second. Then they looked normal again.
Like the world was wearing a mask.
Her dreams got weirder.
In her sleep, she stood in a pitch-black room full of mirrors. Each one showed her face—but with different expressions. One cried. One laughed like a maniac. One opened its mouth in a scream, but no sound came out.
And one mirror—smiling so wide the corners of its mouth touched its ears. Eyes glowing red.
She'd wake up sweating, heart racing.
One afternoon, she tried calling her mom. But the voice on the line—it wasn't her mom.
It was her own voice. But deeper. Echoing.
"What's wrong? Why'd you call me?"
She dropped the phone. But the voice kept speaking—even though the call had ended.
One night, Reina stood in front of her bedroom mirror. The room was dim. Curtains gently swayed, even though the window was shut tight. The air felt warm. Sometimes too warm.
The dagger had been gone for a while. The energy stone? She didn't even remember why it mattered anymore.
But there was this emptiness. Like a black hole inside her. Something pulling her in.
She stared into her own eyes in the mirror and whispered:
"You… that thing… the one who promised me all this..."
"Where are you now? I haven't gotten everything yet. I already gave you blood!"
"Answer me!"
Her reflection grinned. The mood shifted. Tense. Wrong. Its smile was too wide, unnatural. Its mouth moved—whispering something. But no sound came out.
Reina's breathing got faster. Eyes wide. She slammed her fist into the glass.
"WHERE ARE YOU?!"
"YOU PROMISED ME!"
"YOU PROMISED, DEMON!!"
And the mirror cracked.
From the cracks, a faint purple mist began to seep out. The air turned heavy. Oppressive. Something dark filled the room.
In her mind, Reina knew one thing.
She wasn't alone anymore.