Midnight, Ordanis Academy – Riven's Dormitory, East Wing Room 212
The hallucinations began at midnight.
Not the theatrical kind with screaming voices or bleeding walls.
Worse.
Subtle.
A whisper under your thoughts. A breath where there should be none. A flicker of a memory you never lived.
I sat on my bed, shirt tossed over the desk, a glass of cold water half-full beside me. My coat hung by the window, swaying from a breeze I hadn't noticed.
And in the mirror?
I saw her again.
The witch.
Pale-skinned, silver-eyed, stitched smile. She looked at me through the reflection, fingers brushing glass like it was water.
"You collect pieces of ruin, little thief. Each one drags you deeper."
I didn't blink.
"Better to be dragged deeper than left behind."
"You're bleeding from the inside. The Parasite feeds. I bloom. The Echo sings. How many voices will fill your head before it breaks?"
My answer was simple.
"As many as it takes to go home."
She smiled again. The glass cracked.
Then nothing.
Just me, staring at myself.
Alone.
I wiped the blood from my nose.
Five hidden pieces. And every one of them was whispering louder now.
---
[Status Update: Memory Root – Stage 1 Synchronization Complete]
New Skill Gained: Memory Echo (Lesser) – Reproduce any spell you witness within 3 hours at reduced potency. Stacks with Echo Gem Resonance.
Mental Stability: -3 (Temporary)
Side Effects: Mild hallucinations, emotional bleed.
A fair trade.
---
Next Morning: Academy Campus – Rune Alchemy Lecture
Professor Quinlan threw chalk at anyone who yawned. Today, I got hit three times.
"You! Trench coat rat! Mr. Riven Lorne, care to tell us the difference between a tri-circle and bi-line casting array?"
I looked up slowly, resisting the urge to mimic the witch's grin.
"A tri-circle casting array synchronizes with tertiary mana veins and allows multi-spell storage across temporal gaps. Bi-line arrays are for idiots who like their mana unstable."
Half the class blinked.
Professor Quinlan adjusted his glasses. "Correct. Obnoxious, but correct."
Seria Caelum was seated three desks over. I caught her looking at me for the third time that morning.
Her suspicion wasn't fading.
It was sharpening.
---
Lunch – Outer Courtyard
Melo Finn bounced beside me like a caffeinated rabbit, a bag of honey-bread buns in one hand.
"I saw the midterm pairings! I hope I'm with you and Seria again! We're like, Team Accidental Death and Cuddles."
"Pretty sure I'm the death part."
Seria joined us uninvited, her tray piled with grilled mana-fish and roasted kale. She didn't eat yet—just stared.
"You're accelerating."
I paused. "Pardon?"
"Your mana rhythm. I can hear it when you walk. You didn't have a pulse three days ago. Now you beat like a forge hammer."
I kept chewing.
"Some people just have sudden growth."
"That kind of growth takes contracts. Relics. Deals."
"And?"
"Who are you making deals with, Riven Lorne?"
I smiled at her. "Wouldn't you like to know, firebird?"
She blinked.
"…firebird?"
"Fits your vibe."
She looked away, ears tinged pink. "You're insufferable."
I didn't deny it.
Because it was true.
---
Nightfall – Training Ground 5C (Restricted)
I broke into the restricted zone after curfew. Again.
Two barrier glyphs, one binding rune, and a simple sleep charm on the watch golems. Child's play.
Inside, the arena was quiet. The wind whispered through shattered pillars, worn runes glowing faintly across the stone floor.
I stood alone.
Coat off. Shirt soaked in sweat. Karen leaned against the wall like a silent judge.
I activated both Memory Echo and Echo Gem Resonance, then conjured a mock projection of the wolf-attack battlefield using the Room's mana replay crystal. I watched Seria's flame whip. Melo's barrier spell. Even Rauk's failed hammer strike from his duel.
And I copied them. One at a time.
Sloppy.
Flickering.
Wrong pressure.
Each failure carved a new crack into my patience.
Until the witch appeared again—no mirror this time. Just her laughter behind my shoulder.
"You learn as mortals do. But you collect like demons."
I spun. "Why are you showing up more often?"
"Because you feed me. Each echo you store, each spell you steal—it grows. Not just you. Me. We are blooming, Riven Lorne."
I pressed my palm to my chest. The root beneath my skin pulsed, and for a second, I saw it—growing across my ribs like a tattoo in reverse.
It was no longer dormant.
I looked down at my hand.
Cast a flame whip.
Stable.
Sharp.
Precise.
I laughed.
Not because I felt joy.
Because it worked.
---
Midweek: Library Archive – Unlocked Document
I checked the in-game lore file I had manually reconstructed from memory.
[Hidden Piece #5 – Witch's Memory Root Timeline Projection]
> In Chapter 43 of the original game, Seria meets the "Ruined Witch" during a corrupted dungeon run and forms a temporary contract. It grants her the power to fight one of the Demon King's Commanders—but almost kills her.
The contract breaks by force, and she suffers permanent mental backlash, losing access to high-tier spell resonance.
The Witch's Root then disappears—marked as "Lost Forever."
Correction.
Stolen.
By me.
And now? Seria would never suffer that fate.
But she also wouldn't have the power she once did.
Win-win.
---
That Weekend: Midterm Pairings Posted
I stood in front of the massive wall of glowing paper in the main hall.
Midterm Team Survival Test – Forest Ruin Zone C
> Team 11
Riven Lorne
Seria Caelum
Melo Finn
Arkan Drehl
Wait.
Arkan?
Another name I knew.
---
[Main Character Introduction: Arkan Drehl]
Origin: Kingdom of Thalor, House Drehl – Fallen Noble Line
Trait: Ironblood Core – Physical and magical stats increase the more wounds he sustains. Can survive lethal damage for 60 seconds after death trigger.
Class: Battle Knight (Ascended Berserker Route in Game)
Personality: Cold, loyal, ruthless in combat. Becomes a core tank/DPS in final act of the game. Known as the "Unbroken Vanguard."
He was the shield of the hero party.
Unkillable.
Until he died to the Demon King's third general in the penultimate arc, after shielding the others.
A wasted ending, if you ask me.
He was too loyal. Too good.
But now? He hadn't formed bonds yet.
I could see him for what he really was.
And maybe—redirect his path.
---
Preview: Midterm Survival Exam
Next chapter will drop us into the dangerous ruins zone with all four characters: Riven, Seria, Melo, and Arkan.
Expect:
Serious combat (monsters or corrupted fauna),
Tactical interactions between Riven and Arkan,
Seria's suspicion rising to near confrontation,
Riven secretly pushing past his spell limits again,
And the discovery of another hidden piece, possibly tied to the ruin itself.