The twilight hours hadn't yet faded when Rayan found himself wide awake, alone in the adventurers' dormitory. His body still ached from the chaos of the previous night—the warehouse battle where they'd freed dozens of captives from a brutal slaver ring. But the soreness wasn't what kept him up. It was a lingering sensation... a whisper at the back of his mind. Something strange. Something other.
He sat on the edge of his bed, staring out the window as the stars blinked overhead. Every now and then, his hand would twitch toward the sword by his side—the old one he'd used for years. But that wasn't what had haunted him since the battle.
It was something he found, or maybe something that had found him.
Without waking the others, Rayan moved quietly through the dormitory and down the stairs to the guild's storage hall. The crates seized from the bandit warehouse were still piled high in the back, guarded only by the flickering torches and the snores of a sleeping clerk.
He weaved past them with familiarity now, his eyes scanning until they landed on a single chest tucked in the far corner. Iron-bound and half-splintered, it looked like it had been buried under the others during the commotion. No one had opened it.
But Rayan remembered it.
There had been a glint in the chaos, a strange pull in his chest that almost stopped him mid-swing during the fight. He hadn't had time to investigate. Until now.
He knelt in front of the chest and slowly lifted the already broken latch. The lid creaked open.
Inside was a blade.
Wrapped in aged cloth and sealed with a brittle, ancient charm, it exuded something that made the air feel heavier. He reached in with trembling fingers and pulled the cloth away.
A katana. Midnight-black with a faint, silver sheen glowing beneath the moonlight that slipped through the window. The hilt was bound in a cord that shimmered with the texture of scales. It looked like a weapon forged in the abyss and kissed by moonlight.
The moment his hand brushed the hilt, a pulse of energy surged through his arm. It wasn't painful—more like a recognition. The blade hummed in his grip. Silent, but awake.
He stared at it, entranced.
Where had this come from?
No one had mentioned it—not the slaves they freed, not the guards, not the bandits who boasted endlessly about their treasures. It was as if the katana had appeared. Or perhaps, it had waited.
He tried to let go.
He couldn't.
The katana had chosen him.
Morning broke with golden light spilling through the high windows of the Arcania Guild Hall. It was alive with chatter, clinking mugs, and the occasional crash of someone's failed spell practice. In their usual corner, Rayan sat with his back to the wall, the mysterious katana now slung casually—yet unmistakably—across his back.
None of his friends had brought it up. Not yet. But their eyes kept flicking toward it.
Tonio finally broke the silence, slurping the last of his vine-wrapped stew. "So, uh... cool new sword. Got a name? Or is it cursed?"
Rayan gave a half-shrug. "I don't know. I found it last night in one of the crates. Couldn't leave it. It... didn't let me."
Cezar pushed his glasses up his nose, narrowing his eyes. "Swords don't usually let people go, Rayan. That sounds either legendary or very bad."
"I'll figure it out," Rayan said softly. "But that's not the only thing we should talk about."
He looked to Cezar, who straightened up.
"I was thinking the same thing," Cezar said, his tone shifting to something more serious. "We need to think long-term. The Arcania Adventurer's Academy opens enrollment again in three days. If we want to get stronger, if we want to really understand what we're up against, that's where we should be."
Rayan nodded slowly. "Better quests. Better training. Maybe someone there can help me understand this blade."
"I'm down," Tonio said with a grin. "Even if it means going back to school. As long as the food's better than guild slop and we're not dissecting goblins or something."
But then came Yeon.
Yeon, wrapped in his purple cloak, arms crossed, standing at the edge of the table like a prince on the verge of declaring war.
"I am the Dark Lord," he said with the gravity of a stage actor mid-monologue. "I require no institution. No curriculum. I am the best of the best... by just existing."
A long pause followed.
SMACK!
Cezar bopped him on the head with a rolled-up map.
"You misspelled 'dark' on your last mission form. You wrote 'dork lord.'"
Tonio added a thwack of his own using a magically animated vine. "You got lost in a one-room ruin, bro."
Even Rayan leaned over and flicked Yeon's forehead. "You poured healing potion into your sword sheath and asked why your blade wasn't glowing."
Yeon staggered back, holding his forehead with wounded pride. "You fools! These are but the trials of a complex character arc!"
"You're not a dark lord. You're a drama queen," Rayan deadpanned.
"I shall attend only one class: Being Too Cool For This World 101," Yeon proclaimed, cape fluttering dramatically despite the lack of wind.
"Great," Tonio snorted. "We'll enroll you in Basic Navigation and Intro to Not Setting Yourself on Fire."
Everyone burst out laughing.
Even Yeon cracked a smile—right before getting smacked again.
"Fine, fine!" he surrendered. "I'll audit the academy. But don't blame me when the professors fall in love with my power."
"They'll probably fail you for monologuing," Cezar muttered.
The road to Arcania Adventurer's Academy began the next morning.
A cool breeze greeted them as they set off—Rayan, Cezar, Tonio, and Yeon—each carrying light gear and equal parts excitement and dread.
Cezar led the way, holding a scroll with the academy map. "We're supposed to check in for orientation before noon. If we keep pace, we'll get there early."
Yeon was walking just behind him, or rather, posing every few steps.
"I shall now assume my background character arc," Yeon declared. "I will say nothing, blend in, and strike from the shadows only when narratively appropriate."
"You literally glow in sunlight," Tonio said flatly. "And your cloak says 'Yeon the Invincible' in gold thread."
"Subtle branding," Yeon replied without shame.
Rayan just shook his head, walking beside them with the katana on his back. It hadn't pulsed since that night, but he felt like it was watching. Listening.
"I'm excited," Rayan murmured. "To finally learn more about this world. And maybe stop reacting to danger for once. Start preparing for it."
"Same," Tonio nodded. "Though I hope we don't mess this place up. It looks important."
"We've already messed up enough," Cezar added, eyes still on the scroll. "Let's not add 'expelled on day one' to our legacy."
After a few more bends in the road, they finally saw it.
Arcania Adventurer's Academy.
Built into the cliffs that overlooked the city, it was massive. Towers spiraled into the sky, ringed by floating platforms and windbound staircases. Elemental symbols pulsed in the stone gates, and huge statues of famous adventurers stood guard at the entrance.
Students in uniforms dueled in the open-air courtyards, while giant magical beasts circled the tallest spires. It wasn't just a school. It was a fortress of learning, a cathedral of power.
The four of them stood in awe.
"Holy crap," Tonio said. "I feel like I just walked into the climax of a shounen anime."
"This... this is it," Cezar whispered. "Where heroes are made."
Yeon raised both arms to the sky. "I belong here. I shall ascend this temple of mortals and bring it to greatness!"
"Focus, oh chosen one," Rayan said, pushing him forward.
A cloaked figure stepped forward from the gates, face half-hidden, voice cool.
"You're the new students?" the man asked, eyeing each of them. His eyes paused on Rayan's katana. A flicker of recognition, or something close to fear, crossed his expression.
He turned.
"Follow me. Don't get lost. And don't be late."
As they crossed the gates of Arcania Adventurer's Academy, the world behind them faded.
New rivals awaited. New mysteries. And perhaps, answers about the blade, the slavers, and the strange energy tying their fates together.
It was the beginning of something greater.
And they were ready.
Well... mostly.
"I swear if they have uniforms, I'm burning mine," Yeon muttered.
"You'll set yourself on fire again," Tonio replied.
"I REGRET NOTHING!"
They all laughed.
Just another day for the most chaotic group of adventurers Arcania had ever seen.
End of Chapter 6
"OH WAIT I SHOULD BE MORE BACKGROUND CHARACTER, I'LL TRY NOT TO STAND OUT WAY TOO MUCH JUST LIKE THE ANIME I USED TO WATCH!!"
"I'M EXCITED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE WORLD WE ARE CURRENTLY IN"
"I hope we won't mess things up here"