Morning in Ossuarium felt different.

  Not bright.

  Not golden.

  The sky was pale grey, filtered through spires and iron bridges.

  Black banners hung from stone towers.

  The gothic kingdom had awakened.

  Guild doors reopened.

  Mercenaries gathered around request boards.

  Food stalls burned charcoal instead of lantern oil.

  Steel boots echoed on cobbled streets.

  Guards patrolled in disciplined patterns.

  Life resumed.

  Heavy.

  Organized.

  Unforgiving.

  And somewhere beneath it—

  The black market operated in silence.

  At the Inn

  Shura jolted awake.

  “…Oh no.”

  He grabbed his coin pouch.

  Empty.

  He stared at it dramatically.

  “I really used everything…”

  He fell back onto the bed.

  “That circlet was insanely expensive.”

  He stared at the ceiling.

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  “…But it looked perfect on her.”

  A small smile.

  “…Worth it.”

  Then—

  His eyes widened.

  “WAIT.”

  “First day at the Academy.”

  He jumped up.

  “I don’t even know where it is.”

  He paused.

  “I’ll go with Yura.”

  Another pause.

  “…Would that be weird?”

  “First day and I’m following her like ..umm?”

  He shook his head.

  “I’ll just ask her location.”

  He rushed out.

  Without a bag.

  Without supplies.

  Without thinking.

  Streets of Ossuarium

  Vendors recognized him immediately.

  “Oi! Quest boy!”

  “Already running?”

  Shura waved while sprinting.

  “I’m late! I’ll come back!”

  They laughed.

  “What kind of kid wakes up already running?”

  Yura’s Estate

  The estate gates were tall.

  Iron-forged.

  Decorated with silver thorns.

  Guards crossed spears as he approached.

  “Halt.”

  “I’m her friend!”

  They didn’t move.

  Before things escalated—

  A young maid approached from the courtyard.

  She had ash-brown hair tied neatly behind her head.

  Calm eyes.

  Composed posture.

  “It’s fine,” she said gently. “He may enter.”

  The guards stepped aside.

  Shura bowed slightly.

  “Thank you!”

  He rushed inside—

  Only for the maid to step in front of him again.

  “Excuse me. Where are you going?”

  “…Yura?”

  “She left earlier for the Academy.”

  Shura froze.

  “Oh.”

  He scratched his head.

  “I just… needed directions.”

  The maid studied him carefully.

  “I don’t believe we’ve met.”

  “Oh.”

  He straightened slightly.

  “I’m Shura.”

  She bowed politely.

  “Elira. I serve Lady Yura.”

  Shura nodded.

  “Nice to meet you.”

  Elira’s expression softened slightly.

  “…Thank you.”

  “For what?”

  “For staying beside her.”

  Shura blinked.

  Elira continued quietly.

  “Lady Yura has never kept friends her age.”

  “She finds most people… exhausting.”

  “But recently… she smiles more.”

  Shura looked away.

  “She’s not that scary.”

  Elira turned slightly.

  “In the garden.”

  Shura followed her gaze.

  A white flower stood carefully planted among The blossoms.

  Perfectly maintained.

  His breath paused.

  “That…”

  “She brought it from Aethelgard,” Elira said.

  “She instructed me personally to plant and protect it.”

  “She checks it every Hours.”

  Shura’s ears turned red.

  “That’s the one I gave her…”

  Elira slowly turned back to him.

  “…You understand what it means to gift a flower like that?”

  Shura’s face ignited.

  “H-Hey! It just looked beautiful, okay?!”

  Elira hid a smile behind her sleeve.

  “So you don’t like her?”

  “That’s not the point!”

  He stepped back quickly.

  “I’m late!”

  He turned—

  Ran three steps—

  Stopped.

  Turned back.

  “…Where is the Academy?”

  Elira finally laughed softly.

  She gave him clear directions.

  The Academy of Ossuarium

  Shura followed the road upward.

  The city darkened the higher he climbed.

  Gothic arches.

  Spiked rooftops.

  Tall, narrow windows of stained glass.

  Then—

  He saw it.

  The Academy.

  Black stone walls.

  Iron-laced gates.

  And at the center—

  A massive clock tower.

  Dark.

  Towering.

  Its golden hands slowly moving across a deep crimson face.

  The bell rang.

  Deep.

  Resonant.

  Heavy.

  Students flooded inside.

  Uniforms trimmed with silver and dark blue.

  Different crests stitched into sleeves.

  Some nobles.

  Some commoners.

  Some already radiating confidence.

  Shura slowed down.

  “…This is insane.”

  He admired the structure.

  The layered balconies.

  Training yards visible behind iron railings.

  Research towers connected by bridges.

  It felt less like a school—

  And more like a war institution.

  He stepped forward.

  Then froze.

  “…Wait.”

  He looked down.

  He had no bag.

  No books.

  No supplies.

  Nothing.

  He blinked.

  “…Do we even need bags?”

  The bell rang again.

  Louder.

  “So this is my first day…”

  He inhaled slowly.

  Ossuarium Academy.

  Under a skyless World.

  Beneath a ticking tower.