The person who entered was accompanied by two girls. He had light blond hair, impeccable posture and an appearance that easily caught the eye. This was Sven, a cadet from Germany, well known in Cube social circles as someone who was courteous, polite... and a great candidate for hero of his country.
Sven was the kind of guy who, at any other academy in the world, would be seen as a prodigy.
At Cube, however, he soon realized the bitter truth: his brilliance was just an illusion when compared to the real "monsters" that inhabited the halls of that place.
He did have talent. Refined techniques, impeccable military discipline and a good mind. But there, these qualities only placed him at the level of the "ordinary". Among born geniuses, heirs to ancient clans and freaks like Kim Suho, Shin Jonghak, Rachel and Chae Nayun, he was just another one.
And that was eating him up inside.
At first, he tried to make up for it. He trained beyond his limits, studied late into the night, copied the habits of the best. But no amount of effort seemed to be enough to reach the heights to which he swore he belonged.
That's when despair took over.
Perhaps it started with a whisper, an offer disguised as an opportunity. Something that promised real power.
His desire to become stronger, to prove that he wasn't just another pretty face or a forgotten note among geniuses, led him to do the unthinkable.
He sold his soul to a Djinn.
And as if all that wasn't enough, there was another aggravating factor: Sven liked Chae Nayun.
It was an unresolved feeling, a mixture of admiration, desire and frustration, not just because she never saw him as anything more than a distant acquaintance, but because, of all people, she was one of the most unattainable. Strong, charismatic, prestigious by blood and merit.
She was everything he longed to be... and everything he could never achieve.
'If I remember correctly, that's his background...'
I thought, watching as Sven walked past with the two girls by his side. The trio made their way towards the ice-cream counter, without even glancing in our direction.
Of course, it wasn't because they didn't see or recognize us.
It's all thanks to the disguise spell I cast as soon as we arrived in Seoul. A simple but effective spell that distorted the perception of anyone who looked directly at us, like a mental nudge saying: "Hello! I'm just an ordinary person."
It was enough to keep our presence discreet, whenever I wanted.
'I wonder how he would act seeing me and Nayun here...'
For a moment, it crossed my mind to deactivate the magic, but I soon gave up, today was Nayun's date, so let's avoid any unnecessary noise.
So I just watched in silence as Sven chose his ice cream with the girls, oblivious to our presence, or rather, unable to notice it.
Leaving Sven behind, I went back to sipping my ice cream, while looking at the girl in front of me, completely enchanted by that absurd mint and strawberry flavor...
Nayun savored each spoonful with childlike joy, her eyes sparkling and a slight smile on her lips, as if she had found a hidden treasure among the available flavors.
'Ah, whatever. If she likes it, well, if not, whatever. Let's stop thinking about it.'
Shaking my head, I let her savor her treasure in peace.
Long minutes later, between conversations and spoonfuls, with the ice cream dishes already empty and the spoons resting on the table, Nayun stretched lazily in her chair, letting out a satisfied sigh.
"Okay... that was better than I expected."
She said, wiping the corner of her mouth with a napkin, still with a trace of a smile on her lips.
"...Where do you want to go now? I was thinking of something quiet. After that, we'll have lunch, you can buy your things and we'll go back."
"Heh... The truth is, I don't even know what to do."
I admitted, with a lazy smile.
"Oh! That's a new one. You're the one who got all excited about the 'date' and now you're lost? I thought you were going to drag me everywhere."
Amusement park, movie theater, aquarium, restaurant, arcade... The possibilities popped into my head like scenes from a movie I've never lived, only watched.
She crossed her arms, thinking deeply.
"You buy what you want, we'll have lunch, and then we'll wander around aimlessly. Maybe we'll find something nice."
I nodded, since neither of us knew what to do next, it was best to let the wind take us.
Guild - Desolate Moon
The weekend had arrived, and for most of the staff at the Desolate Moon Guild, that meant relief. Relief at being able to go home, spend time with their families, or simply forget, for two days, the weight of the world falling on their shoulders.
But in that imposing building, between silent corridors and air-conditioned rooms, there was one floor where calm did not exist.
Inside a room that, until an hour ago, had been impeccably organized, chaos now reigned. Papers scattered across the floor, two broken coffee cups next to the garbage can, a holograph flickering on the main screen and, at the center of it all, a man was sitting in a chair.
His golden eyes were glazed over, fixed on nothing and everything at the same time, as if the reality in front of him was just a distorted shadow of what really mattered.
His fist was bleeding, the blood dripping slowly through his fingers, dripping onto the floor like a silent mark of his impotent fury. The wall in front of him, or what was left of it, was cracked, punished by countless punches, as if it were to blame for everything he felt.
On the floor, stretched out and moaning in pain, was his secretary. His face was covered in bruises and superficial cuts, his clothes were disheveled, his dignity wounded.
He said nothing. He had already understood that, at that moment, trying to talk to Jonghak was like trying to stop a storm with his bare hands.
Since finding out that Chae Nayun was dating him, Jonghak had never been back to Cube.
Nayun's words had hit him like a knife in the chest, and since then, he had simply locked himself inside his room at the guild.
His mind was spinning, repeating the same thought in a spiral: "She's with someone else. Nayun has chosen someone else."
And he knew... he knew that if he went back to Cube and saw that with his own eyes, something inside him could break irreversibly.
Perhaps it already had.
He took a deep, shuddering breath before running his bloody fingers through the silver strands of his hair.
"It won't stay that way."
Jonghak muttered, his voice hoarse.
"Never... Nayun is mine."
His voice barely carried over the stifling silence of the room, but there, in that whisper, was more fury than in any shout.
He gritted his teeth, the words cutting through the pain:
His golden eyes flashed dangerously, like embers about to ignite something, or someone.
Jonghak had always been proud, always strong. But now, pride was mixed with obsession, which completely clouded his thinking.
He turned slowly, staring at the fallen secretary.
"Get that information from him to every corner of this country."
Even in pain, the secretary swallowed and nodded with difficulty, fear already overriding exhaustion.
Jonghak turned away and walked to the window of the destroyed room. Outside, Seoul shone like a living jewel, but for him, everything was gray.
Everything... until Nayun was back within reach.