*Creak*

The door slowly opened, inviting in a sparse amount of light which dimly illuminated the room. The silhouette of a young man appeared behind the partially opened door. He gently closed the door with his heel and then laid his back flat on the floor. Alone in his room, Jenyx gazed aimlessly in the darkness.

(“I'm sorry.”)

(“...”)

(“So, you’re that mad at me...”)

(“...”)

(“...I’ll see you later, Nyx…”)

Rose’s voice vanished like thin air in his mind. He couldn’t understand what she was thinking and was mad at her. Had Rose stuck to the plan, they wouldn’t be in their current situation. No, to blame her alone for what's happened wasn't quite right. It wasn’t Rose’s fault at all. His mood soured further as the faces of three people appeared in his mind, their sickening voices echoing continuously in his mind.

“Ngh!”

Jenyx clutched a handful of his hair as he felt a familiar throbbing within his head, groveling on the floor as he attempted to withstand the pain.

“You’re mad, aren’t you…?”

“...”

“You hate them so much you want to kill them, don’t you…?”

“Stop…”

“Don’t fight it…”

“Shut up…”

“Aren’t you tired..? Of--”

“I SAID SHUT UP!!!”

Jenyx’s fist swung sideways, burying itself in the nearby wall with a loud and dull noise. In time, the pain in his head gradually subsided. His labored breaths were the only indication of anyone's presence in the darkness. The more he tried to calm himself, the more irritated he became.

“Big bro, big bro! Did something happen!?”

His little sister’s muffled voice yelled from outside accompanied with repeated knocks on the door. 

“I- I’m fine…” Jenyx pulled his fist from the newly-created hole in the wall, dusting off the crumbling pieces falling on his undamaged knuckles as he got up. He quickly put on his clothes and opened the door.

“Who were you talking to? Did you bring someone with you? Is Rose-sis in there?” Meri tried to peek into the room but Jenyx obstructed her view.

“No, I didn’t bring anyone here.”

“I thought you were talking to someo- huh? what’s going on with your eye, big bro?”

“What..?”

“Uwaaaaah~ so cool! I know what that is! That's called a tattoo, right?”

Feeling confused, Jenyx hurried back to his room and opened one of his drawers, picking up a small mirror.

“What… is this…?”

Jenyx saw strange black markings resembling insect-like wings on his left eye’s pupil. What is this? Is it a disease? What if it makes me blind? Every conceivable notion as to what the peculiar markings meant flooded his thoughts.

“Big broooo~ Can you give me a tattoo too?”

Meri, who casually entered the room, tugged on his clothes. He turned to look at his sister and then behind her. He silently breathed a sigh of relief as Meri hadn’t noticed the hole on his wall. 

“Meri, don’t tell this to anyone else, okay?”

“Ehh? Why?”

“Just- don’t tell them okay?  Not to Dad, not to Mom. If you do, I’ll give you one.”

“Really!?” Meri’s face lit up as she replied.

“Y-yeah… Can you do that?"

In response, Meri enthusiastically bobbed her head up and down. 

“Hehe~ don’t forget it, big bro!”

“Yup, now go. I have to, umm… study.”

Meri obediently left his room while humming. After closing the door, he took the mirror again and observed his eye. The markings were still there. However, he felt neither pain nor discomfort in his eye despite the changes. 

(“Just what is going on with my body…?”)

His left eye held an ominous glow to it as he kept staring at his own reflection.

**

“Yo! you finally woke up. I've been waiting so long, ya know?" 

"Huh?"

Jenyx stopped descending the stairs as he saw a familiar figure in their living room sitting from across his mother. He felt a strange sense of deja vu as he rubbed his eyes and pinched himself to see if he was really awake. However, Trey simply kept munching on the snacks set on the table in front of him as he curiously observed Jenyx.

"Why are you here..? Again?"

"Gahahaha~ Don't be like that, let's head to the stadium together!" 

"That's right! Your friend here has been waiting for you for quite some time now, you know? Go get washed up already, Nyx!"

"...Alright." 

Jenyx sluggishly headed to the bath and took a shower. After grabbing Trey and a bite to eat, his mother sent them off as they went on their way to the stadium. 

**

"So... where’d ya go the day before? Ya left me all alone, man. You’re heartless!”

"I did try to wake you up, you know? And I was in a hurry that day.”

“Oh? What’d you do?”

“...Nevermind that, how was the exam?”

“Oh right! Ya didn’t show up fer that either. I received my scores yesterday and somehow, I made it! Thanks for reminding me, man!”

“I see.”

The two kept chatting as they headed to the institution’s biggest stadium, situated at the heart of the capital, in order to watch the matches for the third event, the MCS (Magic Combat Simulation). The only ones allowed to partake in the magic combat simulation are students who were able to take red or blue-colored slips, along with students from sections A and B. The students from section A are pitted against those who were able to acquire blue-colored slips, while students from B were pitted against those who were able to get red-colored slips. In the case that no one from the lower sections were able to attain red or blue slips, the students of section A are pitted against those of section B randomly. Yesterday, the first years fought against each other, and now, it’s time for the second years to take the stage.

“By the way, why are you just arriving at the stadium with me? Weren’t you supposed to be there hours ago to prepare?”

“Yeah, don’t sweat it. I know when the event actually starts and since I had some more time... here we are.”

“Ahh, I see.”

“Something wrong? Ya really look like a deflated balloon today.”

"It's nothing..."

Jenyx couldn’t help but feel anxious. His eye had already returned to normal since then, but his worries didn't vanish. He'd heard of something called the "Eyes of Essence Discernment" from his father, but the pattern in his eyes didn't match the pattern he remembers when he read about it. Plus, it’s been almost 2 days since he and Rose saw each other. Jenyx tried visiting her, but when he arrived at her home yesterday, she was nowhere to be seen. Today, he attended the event even though it wasn’t required, so that he can meet her, and at the same time, head to the library to see if he could find information about the curious condition of his left eye.

“Mmm, aight, if you say so. Oh! We’re here! Be sure to watch my match alright? I'm in the fourth match!"

“Best of luck.”

Trey showed his plate and slip to the guard situated in the gate. After a brief inspection, the guard gave his plate back and Trey made a mad dash to the left as soon as it was returned. On the other hand, Jenyx showed his plate and was guided to the center where the spectators were situated. 

After securing a seat, an alarm blared in the stadium, signaling the entrance of the students. There were 5 of them, including Trey, who looked completely different from earlier, as though a switch was flipped from inside him. He now bore a sharp gaze befitting of a warrior about to enter the battlefield. On the other side, 5 other students emerged. Contrary to the first 5, some of the students were relaxed and were even fooling around with each other. They were students from the A and B sections. The institution’s cream of the crop. They all didn't seem too concerned with their matchups, which only served to irritate some of the students opposite them. 

(“I don't see Brad or Rose anywhere...”)

As he scanned the place for the two, a woman's voice filled the stadium.

“Ladies and Gentlemen! I welcome you to the third event of the annual Combat ability test of the Visterga Grand Institution of Magic! Without further ado! Let us begin!”