The dawning sun gazed down on Caldonia, its light settling gently upon the city's restless spirit. And there, standing under the morning shadows, was Enark.
Pain still lanced through his ribs with every breath—but it was changing. Mending. Recovering.
Almost… inhumanly.
The city felt wrong this morning.
Not louder. Not quieter.
Uneasy.
Voices traveled in hushed bursts. Conversations ended mid-thought. People clustered closer to newspapers, radios turned just a notch higher. Every crevice between buildings felt watched—like the city itself was holding its breath.
Enark felt it all. Heard it all.
The whispers of Caldonia.
At a nearby corner shop, a small crowd had gathered, heads bowed over ink-stained pages. Enark slipped through them quietly.
"What's going on today, boss?" he asked.
The vendor startled, then smiled. "Enark! Haven't seen you in a while. How've you been? Is your grandmother doing alright?"
"She's good," Enark replied. "What's got everyone so spooked?"
"You haven't heard?" the man said.
"Heard what?"
The vendor leaned closer, lowering his voice as though the shadows themselves might listen.
"They're saying a Shade was seen last night. A real one. Right here in Caldonia."
A newspaper was pressed into Enark's hands.
His fingers stiffened.
"Apparently, he took down half a squad of Enforcers and just vanished into thin air," the vendor continued, eyes wide. "They say he wears black. Covers his eyes with some blindfold. Moves like a ghost."
Enark's fingers traced the raised ink, reading through touch alone.
"Shade of Caldonia, huh…" he murmured.
He passed the man a few coins. "Thanks."
"Be careful out there, Enark," the vendor added. "And tell your grandmother I said hello!"
By the time Enark reached the academy gates, he unfolded the paper fully.
UNIDENTIFIED CONJURER SIGHTED
TWELVE MEN FOUND DEAD IN ENFORCER PRECINCT, SUSPECT AT LARGE
POSSIBLE AFFILIATION: CONCORD OF SHADES
His breathing slowed.
"So that's how they're playing this," Enark thought. "Branding me a Shade."
Around him, students clustered in excited knots.
"A Shade? Like from the old stories?"
"No way that's real."
"My dad says the Enforcers are lying again."
"When are they not?"
Enark moved through them with his head lowered before someone slapped him on the back.
"Yo, Enark!" Pain flared up his spine, and he barely kept his footing.
"You okay? You look awful." Archie noted.
"Didn't sleep," Enark said quickly.
Suzune leaned in, grinning. "Morninggg. Have you guys heard the news?"
"The Shade guy? I hear he's also been behind all the recent incidents," Archie added. "Makes sense, doesn't it?"
Enark scoffed lightly. "Come on. We learned back in elementary that it's practically impossible for Shades to even be in Xiphonos."
"Maybe," Suzune replied, "but they've got multiple eyewitnesses. Blindfolded figure in black."
"And anyone who can fight Enforcers and escape?" Archie smirked. "That's Shade-level stuff."
He folded his arms. "Even Kirsty would agree. Right, Kirsty?"
No response.
Suzune glanced around. "Has anyone seen her?"
"I saw her leave early yesterday," Archie said slowly. "…Actually—wasn't she with you, Enark?"
"No," Enark replied evenly. "Bell rang, and we just happened to walk the same way."
"Oh really?" Suzune stepped closer, a teasing smirk playing at her lips. "You sure you weren't heading off somewhere together?"
Before Enark could answer, the bell rang.
"Would you look at that," he said lightly. "Gotta get to class. Talk later!"
He was gone before they could reply.
Kirsty was already seated when Enark entered the classroom.
Her head was bowed, eyes fixed on her hands resting atop the desk.
Still. Too still.
Enark approached quietly and stopped beside her desk.
For a moment, he hesitated.
Then he reached out and tapped her shoulder.
"Hey, Kirsty…"
She flinched—hard—breath hitching as she recoiled.
"Sorry," Enark said quickly. "I didn't mean to startle you."
She steadied herself, forcing a breath. "No—it's okay. I'm just… a little on edge today."
She tried to smile. Tried.
"Morning, Enark."
"Good morning, Kirsty," he replied.
He took his seat.
Even amid the rising noise of the classroom, Enark could feel it—the tension in her posture, the weight in her breathing.
The sound of her guilt.
-----------------------------
And as for Kirsty, she stared blankly at her hands.
"They won't stop shaking," she thought.
She pressed them flat against the desk, willing them still—but the memory bled through anyway.
The room smelled like chalk and old wood, but beneath it… gunpowder. Or maybe that was just in her head.
"It was because of me…"
She glanced sideways.
Enark sat perfectly still, head tilted slightly, as if listening to something no one else could hear.
"Oh… I forgot. I ended up there because I was tailing him yesterday. But he just disappeared."
"Would he have been okay if I'd never done that in the first place?"The blindfolded figure flickered in her mind.
Then, for a split second, she saw it—the figure from the back of Enark.
She shook her head, forcing herself to push it down.
"No… that's crazy."
She glanced back once more.
"But no one should've known I was there…"
"If I turn away… then someone else will fall in my place."
Those words lingered in her mind. The fear that plagued her in that moment no longer clung to her, and now... that voice… it was unmistakably familiar.
Her hands trembled slightly.
"It can't be… " she whispered internally. "He's just… Enark."
Her stomach twisted.
"I can't think about this. I can't…"
"If he really was there… the Shade… yesterday… I was following him… I—"
A soft click of the classroom door made her jump.
Miss Yamamoto stepped in, calm and deliberate, her heels clicking against the floor. Her eyes swept across the room, lingering just slightly on Enark, though her voice remained warm and ordinary.
"Good morning, class," she said softly, placing her bag down on the desk.
Her gaze flicked briefly to Kirsty.
"Miss Kirsty, are you feeling alright?" she asked, quietly, watching for the faintest hint of distress.
Enark, Suzune, and Archie all turned toward her, concern flickering across their faces before they looked away.
Kirsty snapped out of her spiral.
"Oh! Sorry… I'm alright, Teacher. Just a bit tired," she replied, forcing a smile.
Miss Yamamoto nodded once, acknowledging her without pressing further.
"Now, class, today's lesson will focus on Material Conduits of Prime Energy—naturally occurring ores capable of interacting with it. One of the most common examples is the Primal Core—"
The words blurred in Kirsty's mind. She exhaled slowly, steadying herself, and glanced back at Enark at his desk.
Amid the chaos of her thoughts, one single question remained:
"Enark…"
"Who… are you?"