Five hundred years ago, a celestial being existed, he founder of all magic, the one who created Solmara itself. He was kind by nature, gentle despite his immeasurable power, and he stood above all others as the most powerful being ever known. To the world, he was simply called the Founder.
Because of who he was, no guards stood watch within the palace. No walls were reinforced. No defenses were raised. No one could even imagine a world where someone would dare harm the Founder.
And yet, a human walked in.....
He entered the palace without resistance, his footsteps echoing through the vast, empty halls. He walked and walked, passing towering pillars and endless corridors, until he came across a long hallway that stretched toward a single room.
He began to run, when he reached it, he slowed and stepped inside.
And there, standing before him, was the Founder.
The human said nothing.
He simply walked forward, slowly, toward the most powerful being to ever exist. And yet, he did not show a single trace of fear.
The Founder noticed this and spoke, his voice calm and amused.
"Ah… yes. Someone daring enough to challenge me. How interesting. It has been over two hundred years."
He slowly turned around.
Upon facing the human, the Founder was revealed in full, wearing a shining white crown upon his head, long white hair flowing down his back, and robes of pure white, untouched by time itself. But the moment his eyes met the human's, his expression shifted, becoming oddly defenseless.
"W-What? A human?" he said. "Well, I didn't expect that. Still… what can I do for you?"
The human said nothing.
He continued walking forward, his grip tight around a sword.
It was no ordinary blade.
It was the legendary Sword of Solmara.
The Founder noticed it, but thought little of it.
Then...…
The human suddenly charged forward.
"RAAAAAH!"
The Founder did not dodge. He believed himself unbeatable.
The sword swung through the air.
SWOOSH!
A sharp pause followed.
CRACK!
The blade sliced clean through the crown, splitting it in two, and then plunged straight into the Founder's chest piercing his heart.
"KGH!"
Blood spilled from his mouth as he staggered backward.
"Ah… shit," he muttered weakly. "Dam didn't expect that either… haha."
He smiled.
"Thank you."
With those final words, the Founder collapsed and died on the spot, still smiling.
The human stood there in silence, confused by the words he had spoken. But he did not dwell on it. He turned around, walked away, and left the sword behind.
Time Skip — 500 Years Later
Solmara was not the only dimension.
It was the first, the strongest, and the birthplace of all magic. But beyond it existed other dimensions, each weaker than the last.
Earth was the seventh.
A dimension with no king, no magic, and no ruler to watch over it the weakest of them all
And in this forgotten world, a normal teenage boy lived his ordinary life
Joine
Joine is seventeen, tall for his age, with messy white hair that fell slightly over his eyes. His silver eyes always looked a little bored or half-asleep, and his light brown skin caught the morning light whenever he stepped outside. He doesn't look special. He doesn't feel special, just another student in a typical school uniform.
"Ugh… another morning, another day of nothing," Joine muttered.
He got up, rushed through his routine, brushed his teeth, grabbed something quick to eat, and ran out the door without saying a single word to his little sister.
Joine arrived at school early.
The morning halls were empty, filled only with the sound of his footsteps echoing through the corridor. No voices. No laughter. Just an empty void of silence
It was always like this.
Arriving before anyone else, leaving after everyone was gone.
He sighed, stuffing his hands into his pockets.
"Damn… can't someone be early like me for once?"
Joine went to his classroom, waited for everyone to arrive, and eventually fell asleep at his desk.
"Joine… Joinneee… wake up!"
"Haha, yes one burger plea…."
He jumps awake. "Uh… what? Oh… I fell asleep lol"
The class burst into laughter.
"Well then," the teacher said, adjusting her glasses, "let's begin."
Teachers talked. Chalk scratched against the board. Time moved painfully slow.
Joine sat by the window, staring outside while pretending to listen, his head resting against his hand.
"What class was this again…? Oh well."
His phone buzzed under the desk.
A message… Probably nothing important
"I KNOW DAMN WELL YOU DIDN'T JUST LEAVE WITHOUT TELLING YOUR ADORABLE LITTLE SISTER GOOD MORNING!!"
...
Yeah. Probably nothing important
Joine sighed and typed back under the desk.
"I was gonna be late. I'll say it later."
His phone buzzed instantly.
"LATER WHEN?? AFTER SCHOOL? AFTER YOU DIE??"
Another message followed…
"DO YOU KNOW HOW TRAUMATIZED I WAS?? I STOOD IN THE KITCHEN FOR A FULL MINUTE WAITING!!"
And another…..
"A FULL. MINUTE."
And…
"WAITING"
Joine covered his mouth, trying not to laugh.
"Yeaaa… I'm not gonna reply"
"Joine."
He snapped his head up. "Yes!"
"Put the phone away," the teacher said.
"Yes, ma'am teacher," Joine replied quickly, shoving it into his pocket.
Joine leaned back in his chair, exhaling.
"haha, She's gonna kill me when I get home"
After many painfully slow hours, the bell finally rang. Chairs scraped against the floor as everyone packed their things and rushed to leave.
Everyone… except Joine.
"Joine, stay back and clean the classroom," the teacher said.
"WAAAAAA YOU WANT ME TO STAY?!" Joine shouted.
"YOU KNOW MY SISTER IS GONNA FLIP!"
The teacher adjusted her glasses.
"Well, tell her next time not to text you during class or turn off your notifications."
Joine froze.
"…Oh."
Yeah. He was cooked.
After everyone had left, the teacher handed Joine the keys to the classroom.
"Great… thanks," Joine said flatly.
She smiled. "Hehe, no problem"
Joine walked back into the classroom and closed the door behind him.
"Mmm… alone again," he sighed
He grabbed the broom from the corner and started sweeping, already feeling defeated. After a while of boring sweeping, he pulled a chair over and slumped down, taking a short break even though he hadn't done much.
Two hours passed
Joine finally woke up. He rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock.
"…Eh?"
His eyes widened.
"Ehhhh… EHHHHH?! WHAT?!"
Joine's heart skipped a beat. He quickly glanced toward the windows. Outside, the sky was already dark, the school grounds completely empty.
No footsteps.
No voices….
Nothing…..
Joine swallowed and let out a nervous laugh.
"Heh… guess I took a longer break than I said I would."
"Oh well… haha. The teacher likes me, so I guess I'll just leave now," Joine said nervously.
He scratched the back of his head. "I'll just tell her I fell asleep… or I can come to school early like usual and clean. Yeah. Heh… heh"
His laugh came out a little forced
"AHHH!!"
Joine nearly jumped out of his skin.
"…Oh, It's just my phone," he muttered, clutching his chest. "Damn… this silence is getting to me."
"What does she want? She already got me in trouble."
BZZ!
"HOW DARE YOU LEAVE ME ON READ?! AND WHERE ARE YOU?! AHHHH!"
Joine groaned, turning off his phone and setting it down.
"Mmm… this day couldn't get worse, right?"
Then...…..
An unknown figure flowed through the air.
"Perfect… he will do. Until we meet again"
The figure spoke, but Joine couldn't hear a single word
"Anyways… for now, I'll entrust this to you, human"
The unknown figure threw the crown and disappeared without a trace.
Something bright and shiny suddenly smashed through the window.
CRASH!
The window shattered, shards of glass scattering across the classroom floor.
"AHHH!! Jeez… great. I had to jinx it."
"…Alright," Joine muttered shakily. "I'll just see what just happened."
He slowly turned around, and immediately froze.
"...…"
Joine was speechless.
After a moment, he swallowed hard, his mouth dry as he forced himself to move. He walked toward the window, carefully stepping around the broken glass scattered across the floor. Shards glittered faintly under the classroom lights.
Then he noticed something else.
"…Mm? What is this?"
He bent down and picked it up, examining it closely.
"Huh… looks like a crown," he muttered. "But… it's split in two?"
A strange chill ran down his spine.
Joine quickly leaned toward the window and looked outside.
Nothing.
No movement.
No person.
No sign of anyone being there.
"…Strange."
As he pulled his hand back
"Ah!"
A sharp sting shot through his palm.
"Ahw, my hand!"
He looked down to see a thin line of blood forming where a piece of broken glass had cut him
Joine winced, clutching his hand.
"…Great. Just great"
He wiped his palm against his pants, hissing as the sting flared again. But before he could complain more, something felt… off
"…Okay," he muttered. "That's new"
The pain faded
Too fast
Joine blinked and looked down.
"…Huh?"
He blinked twice.
"Wow… th-that's crazy."
The thin cut on his hand was already closing. The blood dried, and then it vanished, leaving only smooth skin behind as if it had never been there
"…Nah," he said flatly. "Nope I'm too tired. I definitely fell asleep again. Yeah… surely I'm dreaming, of course"
Joine slapped his own cheek.
"Wake up. Wake up. WAKE UP!!"
Nothing happened.
"…Ugh," he sighed, giving up. "Guess this is real, huh."
He let out a weak laugh, but it came out wrong.
Joine glanced at the crown still resting in his other hand.
"…Where did you even come from?" he muttered. "And why are you split in half?"
He paused, and then frowned at himself.
"…Great. Now I'm talking to a crown like it's a person."
"…Or worse, like it can talk"
He sighed
"…But taking you also feels bad."
The crown, unsurprisingly, did not respond.
Joine sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, staring at it.
"…I also can't just leave you here," he muttered. "That's literally how those movies start. Someone finds something weird, decides it's not their problem, and walks away like nothing happened."
He glanced around the empty classroom.
"And then later they're like, 'Huh, why is everything suddenly going wrong?'"
Joine shook his head.
"…Yeah. Not doing that."
He glanced at his bag, then back at the crown again.
"…Okay. New rule!" he said. "You're not cursed, you're not alive, and you're definitely not allowed to talk."
The crown continued to be a crown.
He opened his bag and gently placed it inside, wrapping it with his hoodie like he was tucking in a sleeping animal.
"There. Stay. Don't do anything weird."
He zipped the bag shut.
Paused.
Then unzipped it slightly
"…And if you do something weird," he added, peeking inside, "wait till I'm home."
Satisfied, Joine slung the bag over his shoulder.
"…Alright," he muttered. "Time to go home and pretend today didn't happen."
Joine walked back to the classroom door and stopped, glancing over his shoulder one last time.
Broken window
Glass on the floor
Empty room
"…Yeahhhh… I'm sure it'll be fine," he muttered. "Haha, right? I mean, I didn't do anything. Actually… I didn't see anything."
He stepped out into the hallway and pulled the door shut behind him.
Joine slid the key into the lock.
Click.
He tested the handle once.
Locked.
"Alright," he said to himself. "Officially not my problem anymore"
He started walking down the hallway.
"…This school is way creepier at night," he mumbled. "Why do schools always feel like this? I've seen way too many horror movies about schools at night."
He shook his head.
"…Anyway. More walking, less talking"
And that's exactly what Joine did.
He continued down the hall, even breaking into a short run.
By the time he reached the entrance, the sky outside had fully darkened. City lights flickered in the distance. Cars passed by.
Everything looked normal.
Joine sighed in relief and started walking home.
The streets were quiet but familiar. Streetlights hummed softly overhead. Somewhere nearby, a dog barked.
Joine shoved his hands into his pockets and kept moving.
"…I'm definitely late," he muttered. "And I have to get up early for school. Ugh. Such a drag"
Joine finally reached home.
And there she was.
His little sister, Amy is 14, much shorter than Joine, with long red hair flowing freely behind her and sharp red eyes that burn with intensity. Her pale skin and small frame make her look harmless at first glance, but her fiery gaze and restless energy hint she is anything but. She wears short pants and an oversized, loose top that doesn't quite fit, perfectly matching her bold, unpredictable personality, always ready to stir up trouble or challenge anyone who gets in her way.
"Okay," he whispered to himself, "now the only obstacle is my sister. Mmm… she's probably sleeping. Hopefully"
He crept up to the door, carefully turned the handle, and eased it open….
And there she was
Standing in the hallway
Holding a knife
They stared at each other
"…Wrong house," Joine said awkwardly. "Heh Heh"
He slowly closed the door again.
Click
"Guess I should just wait," Joine muttered under his breath. "I mean, she'll probably go back to sleep soon. It's just a matter of time."
From the other side of the door, his sister's voice drifted out. Calm. Too calm.
"Sooo," she said lightly, almost sing-song. "How was school, mmmm?"
Joine straightened.
"Oh. Uh. It was good."
"Good?" she replied. "That's nice. Then why don't you come inside?"
Joine hesitated, eyes flicking to the gap beneath the door.
"Sure," he said slowly. "But… what's with the knife?"
"Oh, this?" she said, cheerful. "I was just cutting up some vegetables."
"…Ahh. Okay," Joine nodded, even though she couldn't see him. "Well. You can put it down, right?"
There was a pause
"…Of course," she said sweetly.
Joine waited.
And waited….
Then the sound of footsteps moving away, the she set the knife down on a counter
"There," his sister said from farther inside the house. "Happy?"
"Yeah probably"
Joine open finally open the door
"You're late."
Before Joine could even open his mouth, she picked the knife back up.
"AHHHH!!"
She lunged towards him
"WAITT!!"
Joine spun on his heel and bolted.
"CHILL!!" he yelled, nearly slipping as his feet scrambled for traction.
He spotted the stairs.
Now or never.
Joine sprinted, taking two steps at a time, barely grabbing the railing to keep himself from falling. Behind him, he heard his sister's footsteps pounding closer.
"YOU SON OF A BITCH!"
She rushed the stairs after him, but Joine had the lead. He burst into his room, threw himself inside, and slammed the door shut just as she reached it.
BANG.
BANG.
BANG.
"OPEN THIS DOOR!"
Joine stumbled back and collapsed flat onto the bed, pulling the covers over him like that might help.
"Go away… go away… go away…"
The door rattled again. Harder.
Then another hit.
Then…
Silence.
Nothing.
"…Uhhh… okay," he muttered, his voice cracking. "Guess she gave up."
He was too exhausted to think. Too exhausted to unpack. He didn't even bother taking off his clothes or checking his bag.
Within seconds, sleep dragged him under.
The room went quiet.
In the dark, his bag shifted slightly on the floor.
Morning was coming.
And Joine had no idea how unready he was.