A knock on my door startles me, pulling me back to reality.

“Mika, can I come in?” Gabe’s soft voice brings a smile to my face.

“Of course, Gabe. Come in,” I reply affectionately.

I love my brother. He’s the only person who truly cares about me and loves me unconditionally.

Gabe opens the door, stepping into my chamber with a small wooden tray in his hands. On it, there is a wooden bowl of potato soup and a glass of water. “I’ve brought you something to eat because you must be starving. Dad is insane. I can’t believe he wouldn’t let you finish your dinner.” He sets the tray down on the small wooden table, then sits beside me, gently petting Moon.

“Thank you, Gabe. You’re the sweetest,” I say, my heart warming. “But won’t Dad get mad if he finds out you have brought me soup?”

“Don’t worry about me, Mika. Mom helped me heat the soup while Dad got blind drunk on ale.”

“Really? Why did Mom help you? She hates me as much as Dad does.” I frown, confused.

“Mom doesn’t hate you, nor does Dad.”

“Right. No wonder you’re their favorite kid. Bootlicker,” I mock, rolling my eyes.

“What’s this? A history book?” Gabe ignores my comment and snatches the book from my lap, grimacing. “For White Dragon’s sake. What are these?”

“They are historical accounts, Gabe. Something you aren’t familiar with.”

“And apparently, I’m not the only one who isn’t familiar with them.” He arches an eyebrow, smiling. “Are you studying these?”

“I’m trying to, but I can’t wrap my mind around those things. Why do I have to know what happened in the Human Empire centuries ago? It isn’t like knowing will change anything in my life,” I pout, annoyed.

“And that’s why I became one of Blood Ball’s players.”

“You’re lucky you’re good at Blood Ball. I don’t have any talent at all. I’m a big sack of potatoes, and even potatoes have the purpose of becoming food.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You do have a talent, but you just don’t know about it yet.” He pauses, staring into my eyes. “If you could choose a talent, which one would you choose? What would you like to be the most in this world?”

I think for a moment, imagining myself in a number of different situations and having different personalities.

“I would love to be either a Dark Mage or a Light Mage, casting light and dark spells,” I exclaim, beaming at the thought of becoming a real mage and a magical being.

Gabe gapes at me for a moment and bursts into loud waves of laughter.

“Why are you laughing? I’m serious,” I complain, narrowing my eyes.

“Oh, Mika, you’re a poor soul. I feel sorry for you if that’s really what you want to be.” He tries to stop laughing but fails miserably. “First of all, Light Mages and Dark Mages were wiped out during the Big War years ago.” He finally stops laughing. “You know only nobles of the highest hierarchy—those born with mana, which is already rare—and granted permission by the emperor are allowed to study and use magic. Even then, they’re all destined to become Royal Mages. The only reason they’re accepted is that, unlike magical creatures, they don’t have mana stones, proving they’re still humans despite their ability to wield magic. Besides, can you imagine what would happen if just anyone could use magic? It would be chaos. Dad would definitely use it to punish you. Be grateful we can’t, because magic is a curse.”

I don’t agree with him at all. I believe that Light Mages and Dark Mages still exist somewhere, and I also believe that magic isn’t a curse but a gift from the White Dragon.

“I’m afraid that Dad will punish me with or without magic because I’m definitely going to fail my history test tomorrow. I might as well give up and accept my horrible fate.” I sigh deeply.

“Don’t worry. The Blood Ball match against the Kingdom of Loveburns is happening on Saturday, and Dad will be too busy cheering for me to think about punishing you,” my brother smirks, causing me to groan loudly in response.

“Gabe, have you brought us food?” Sun interrupts us, pointing his front paw at Moon and himself.

Gabe laughs and takes a little package made out of cloth out of his pocket. “Of course I have. I’ve got scraps from dinner.” He drops the pieces of meat into my cats’ bowls on the floor.

Sun and Moon immediately attack the food, devouring it .

“Meow. Thank you, Gabe. Meow,” Sun says, thanking him with his mouth full.

“Manners, Sun. You shouldn’t speak with your mouth full,” Moon scolds him.

“Are you ready for Saturday’s match ?” I ask my brother, watching my two cats inhale their food like hungry piglets.

Gabe furrows his eyebrows, responding, “The team has been practicing hard for the past six months, but honestly? No, I’m not ready because there’s too much pressure. There are rumors about the king, you know. People are saying that if we lose, the king is going to execute us.”

My eyes widen as I gape at my brother. “That’s horrible. But those are just rumors, right? The king would never do that.”

“Are you sure about that? He executed two of my teammates just for missing a couple of practices. The king is well-known for being cold-hearted and unfair, just like the rest of the royal family.” He grimaces as he opens my chamber’s door. “Well, I’m already heading to bed because my practice starts at dawn.”

“Thank you for bringing me food. You’re the best brother ever.” I stand up from the bed and kiss him on the cheek.

“I know I am.” He winks. “I love you, Mika.” He drops a peck on my forehead and walks out , closing the door behind him.

I grab the tray with the soup and water and sit on the edge of my bed, beginning to eat slowly.

“You know, every time I see Gabe, I wonder if he is really my brother,” I mumble to my cats, frowning.

A brief silence falls over them; they’ve finished eating and are now grooming themselves.

“Why are you saying that?” Moon asks hesitantly.

I shrug. “I don’t know. Gabe just doesn’t behave like a normal brother, I guess. Besides, we look nothing alike.”

Gabe is a sweetheart, and I love him with all my heart. I may be insane, but I have noticed that he treats me differently now compared to when we were children. I don’t know if it is my imagination, but sometimes he is a bit too affectionate. Like, I have lost count of how many times I have caught him staring at me in a way that feels… different.

I glance at Moon, waiting for her response, but she stays silent. She shares an eerie look with Sun before jumping onto my bed and making herself comfortable on my pillow.

“Are you going to eat all your food, Mika?” Sun asks, approaching me, drooling at the sight of my soup.

I let out a loud laugh and shake my head, placing the bowl on the floor.

“The soup is all yours, Sun. I’m not hungry anyway.” I smile fondly at him, drink my water, and return the tray to the table. Then I flop down next to Moon, sighing.

“Why do you think you’re adopted?” Moon asks out of nowhere.

“It’s just a crazy suspicion, that’s all.”

“Meow. Have you been feeling different lately?” Her big green eyes are full of concern as she stares at me.

“What do you mean?”

“Have you noticed any changes in your body or mind?” She bumps her head against my hand, silently asking for pets.

“Nope.” I pause for a moment, frowning. “Well, I have been kind of impatient and angry lately. Everyone and everything annoys me.” I pet her on the head.

“That’s bad, Moon. That’s really bad.” Sun jumps onto the bed and speaks to her before climbing onto my stomach, staring at me. “Mika, whatever happens, you have to tell Moon and me. Meow, please, promise us.”

What are they talking about? Why is Moon asking me about changes, and why do they seem so disturbed?

“What is going on? Why are you asking me this?” I narrow my eyes at them suspiciously.

“Mika, I think that—” Sun starts, but he is interrupted by Moon, who bounces over and knocks him to the floor.

“No, Sun. It’s not time yet,” Moon hisses.

“It isn’t time for what?” I sit up on the bed, gaping at them, feeling super confused and intrigued.

“Meow. I’m sleepy.” Moon yawns, gives Sun one last furious glance, then jumps back onto the bed, lying between my legs and closing her eyes in silence.

“Hey. Could one of you please answer me? It isn’t time for what? What do you two know that I don’t?” I insist, annoyed that I have no idea what is going on.

“Goodnight, Mika.” Sun ignores me and lies down next to Moon, closing his eyes between my legs.

I sigh and give up on trying to get answers from them, as they can be very stubborn when they want to be. So, I blow out the tallow candles and lie on my back, pulling the cover over me.

Curse it, I didn’t study for tomorrow’s test. I’m going to fail for sure. I wonder what kind of punishment Dad will give me this time.

I close my eyes, making a considerable effort to sleep, but to no avail. I’m so worried about the test and my dad that I can’t calm my nerves and relax.

I finally fall asleep late at night, but I have a nightmare.

* * *

I stand before a beautiful white castle, staring at the gate as if waiting for someone to come out. I wait and wait and wait. Flowers bloom everywhere around me, the wind blows sweetly against me, and the sky is filled with dense clouds. I look down at my body and see that I’m wearing a long, black dress, paired with a black hooded cape featuring red and golden details. I notice that my hair is dark, and I feel different. I feel angry, scared, and ready to kill.

Suddenly, a loud crash shatters the front gate of the castle, and a dark shadow moves toward me, leaving a trail of destruction behind it. The flowers begin to wilt, and the rain starts pouring down, washing over me.

“I’ll destroy you, and you’ll regret crossing my path,” I shout angrily at the shadow, but I don’t know why.

While silent, it keeps advancing in my direction, its power and mana taking over everything around me—my head starts to hurt so much to the point that I feel like it might explode at any moment.

“Give up now. Join me, and I shall spare your life,” the shadow finally says, its voice low and menacing.

Feeling anger boiling inside me, I glare at him, my whole body shaking as rays of light and dark flames coil around me. My palms burn like fire as I point them at him.

“Never,” I bark in response, shooting a powerful beam of white light encircled by dark flames.

It hits the shadow, sending it flying back from the impact. However, a brief moment later, it is back on its feet, lifting its arms in front of it and up toward the sky. The next thing I know, an arm of shadows, holding swords, is bursting from the ground, its dark energy flooding the air.

“You are the last one left alive, but that is about to change.” The shadow laughs and snaps its fingers.

I feel my heart shrink while an unbearable pain takes over my body, forcing me to kneel down. I instinctively place my hand over my chest, trying to soothe the pain and heal whatever is damaging my muscles, my organs, and my soul.

“Goodbye, Last One,” the shadow jeers and snaps its fingers again.

One of the shadows thrusts its sword into my chest, and it feels like I’m being ripped apart and swallowed by darkness, blood pouring from my stomach, my mouth, and even my eyes.

“I’m sorry I failed,” I whisper, and everything goes black.

* * *

“Mika, Mika. Wake up. Wake up.”

I faintly hear Sun’s desperate voice, and I open my eyes, gasping for breath and sweating.

“What is going on?” I mutter, confused. “Where am I?” I frantically look around, searching for the shadow from my nightmare , but thankfully, I see only Sun’s concerned face staring warily at me.

“Did you have the same nightmare again?” he asks, touching my cheek with his front paws.

I have been having the same hellish nightmares every single night since I turned nineteen, and calling them disturbing would be an understatement.

I close my eyes and nod, taking a long, deep breath, bothered by my gown sticking uncomfortably to my body and the soaking wet sheet from my sweat.

“Is it morning already?” I open my eyes again and look outside the window—it’s still dark, and there is a heavy silence in the air.

“It’s not dawn yet,” Sun replies, still staring worriedly at me. “Go back to sleep. You look tired.”

I nod and give him a small smile. However, when I close my eyes again, the image of the shadow lingers in my mind.

Why do I keep having this strange nightmare? Is it from a book I read about mages that I don’t recall? Or is my imagination driving me insane?

“Goodbye, Last One. You are the last one alive.” The shadow’s words keep haunting me, even though I have no idea what they mean.

Great, everyone already believes I’m mad. I suppose my dreams are simply reinforcing my sense of madness.

I finally fall asleep a moment later, and much to my relief, my dreams are once again empty and meaningless.