Curse

Chapter 4: The Voice

The classroom remained strangely quiet after the window cracked.

Even the teacher seemed unsettled.

A few students glanced around nervously while whispering among themselves.

“That was creepy…”

“Maybe the frame was old?”

“No way. It cracked all of a sudden.”

Irene kept her gaze lowered toward the table, trying to steady her breathing.

Her chest still felt tight.

The strange darkness inside her hadn’t disappeared.

It felt stronger.

Meanwhile, Zayn continued staring at the cracked window with narrowed eyes.

Something about it bothered him.

The timing felt too strange.

His gaze slowly shifted toward Irene again.

Pale face.

Shaking hands.

Avoiding eye contact.

“…Suspicious,” he thought quietly.

“Enough distractions,” the teacher suddenly said firmly, trying to calm the classroom atmosphere. “Open your textbooks.”

The students reluctantly obeyed.

Soon, the lesson continued as if nothing had happened.

But Irene couldn’t focus at all.

Every sound around her felt distant.

The whispers.

The turning pages.

The scratching of pens.

Everything sounded muffled beneath the violent beating of her heart.

Then suddenly,

A strange voice echoed softly inside her mind.

“Poor thing…”

Irene froze.

Her eyes widened slightly.

“…What?”

The voice was soft.

Cold.

Almost gentle.

She quickly looked around the classroom.

No one seemed to notice anything. The students continued writing normally.The teacher continued speaking at the front.

Then the voice came again.

“They hurt you again…”

Irene’s fingers trembled.

Her breathing became uneven.

“…Who’s there?” she thought desperately.

A cold sensation brushed against the back of her neck.

“You should punish them.”

Irene immediately gripped the edge of her chair tightly.

“No…”

Her voice came out as barely a whisper.

A nearby student frowned.

“Huh?”

Irene quickly shook her head.

“…Nothing.”

But the voice only laughed softly inside her mind.

“You hate them too.”

“No…”

“You want them to suffer.”

“No!”

SLAM!

The table shook violently beneath Irene’s hands.Several students flinched in shock.The teacher stopped speaking immediately.

“Irene?”

The entire classroom stared at her.

Irene’s eyes widened in horror.

She slowly realized that dark shadows were spreading beneath her chair like black smoke.

A few students gasped.

“What is that?!”

“The floor—!”

The shadows quickly disappeared again before anyone could react properly.

Silence filled the room.

Pure silence.

The teacher’s expression slowly changed.

Fear.

For the first time,

Someone looked genuinely afraid of her.Irene immediately stood up from her seat.

“I-I apologize…” she said shakily.

Without waiting for permission, she hurried toward the classroom door.

“Irene, wait!”

But she already ran out.

The hallway felt suffocating.

Irene pressed herself against the wall while struggling to breathe properly.

“What’s happening to me…?”

Her hands trembled violently.

The black mark near her wrist burned painfully beneath her sleeve.

She could still hear that strange voice laughing softly inside her head.

Then suddenly,

Footsteps approached from behind.

Slow.

Calm.

Irene froze immediately.

Zayn stopped a few feet away from her, his sharp eyes fixed directly on her trembling figure.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then his gaze slowly lowered toward her hidden wrist.

“…What are you hiding?”

Irene’s heartbeat quickened instantly.

“N-Nothing.”

Her voice sounded weak.

Unconvincing.

Zayn narrowed his eyes slightly.

“You ran out of class like you saw a ghost.”

“I said I’m fine.”

For some reason, his presence only made her feel even more suffocated.

She tried to walk past him, but Zayn suddenly grabbed her wrist firmly.

The moment his fingers touched her skin,

A violent pulse of dark energy burst inside Irene’s chest.

Her vision blurred.

Black shadows flickered around her feet for a split second.

Zayn immediately released her arm and stepped back slightly.

His expression darkened.

“…What was that?”

Irene quickly hid her wrist behind her back.

Fear spread across her face.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

But Zayn clearly saw it.

For just a second—

Something black moved beneath her skin.

Like smoke trapped inside her veins. His eyes narrowed further.

“Your mana feels strange.”

Mana.

The word alone made Irene freeze.

Most nobles possessed mana.

Some are stronger than others.

But dark mana,

That was forbidden.

Cursed.

Monstrous.

People with dark magic were feared across the empire. Stories claimed they brought disasters wherever they went.

Entire villages had once been burned simply because rumors of dark mages existed nearby.

If anyone discovered her secret, She would die.

“I need to go,” Irene said quickly.

Before Zayn could stop her again, she hurried down the hallway as fast as her injured legs allowed.

Zayn watched her silently.

Something definitely wasn’t normal.

And for the first time,

He felt curious about her.

The rest of the lesson passed slowly.

Irene hid herself inside the library to avoid everyone.

The grand library of the dukedom was almost empty during lesson hours, making it the only peaceful place she could think of.

She sat near the farthest bookshelf and buried her face in her arms.

“What’s happening to me…?”

The black mark on her wrist continued burning painfully.

No matter how much she rubbed it, it refused to disappear.

It almost looked alive.

Irene slowly lifted her sleeve again.

The mark had spread slightly higher now.

Thin black lines curled across her pale skin like branches.

Fear tightened inside her chest.

“This can’t be normal…”

Then suddenly,

The air around her grew colder.

The candles nearby flickered violently.

A soft whisper echoed once more inside her head.

“They deserve worse.”

Irene immediately stood up.

“Stop…”

“You suffered because of them.”

“Please stop…”

“Why do you still endure it?”

The whisper sounded clearer now.

Closer.

Almost as if someone stood directly behind her.

Irene turned around quickly—

But nobody was there.

Only darkness between the bookshelves.

Her breathing became uneven again.

“I’m losing my mind…”

A sudden sound interrupted her thoughts.

Footsteps.

Someone else was inside the library.

Irene quickly fixed her sleeve and backed away nervously.

An old man appeared from behind the shelves, carrying several dusty books in his arms.

The duke’s librarian.

His cloudy eyes landed on Irene for a moment before widening slightly.

“My lady?”

Irene lowered her head politely.

“…Sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

But the old man kept staring at her strangely.

Almost cautiously.

Then his gaze slowly shifted toward her hidden wrist.

For a brief second,

His expression changed completely.

Fear.

Pure fear.

“You…” he whispered quietly.

Irene’s chest tightened.

“Hm?”

The old librarian quickly looked away.

“…Nothing.”

But his hands trembled slightly as he placed the books onto the table.

The silence between them felt uncomfortable.

Then suddenly, one of the books slipped from his arms and fell onto the floor.

THUD.

Irene instinctively bent down to pick it up.

But the moment her fingers touched the cover—

A strange reaction occurred.

Dark smoke suddenly spread across the ancient book.

The pages flipped violently on their own.

The candles extinguished instantly.

The entire library darkened.

The old librarian stepped back in horror.

“T-That book…”

Irene immediately released it.

The pages stopped moving.

Silence returned once more.

Both of them stared at the book lying on the floor.

Its cover was old and damaged, written in an ancient language Irene didn’t recognize.

Yet strangely—

One symbol glowed faintly in black.

The old librarian looked pale.

“Where did you get this book?” Irene asked softly.

But the old man ignored the question completely.

Instead, he looked directly into her eyes.

“My lady…”

His voice trembled.

“You must never let the duchess see that mark.”

Irene froze.

Her blood ran cold.

“…You know about this?”

The librarian hesitated.

Then slowly,

Very slowly,

He nodded.

“There were stories long ago,” he whispered carefully. “About people born with cursed mana.”

Irene’s breathing became uneven.

“Dark mages?”

The old man immediately looked around nervously before lowering his voice further.

“Do not say those words loudly.”

Fear filled his expression.

“If the duchess hears even a rumor, you will not survive.”

Irene felt her stomach twist painfully.

“…Then what should I do?”

The librarian remained silent for several seconds.

Then he glanced toward the strange book again.

“There may be answers inside that book.”

Irene looked down at it uncertainly.

“But…”

“That book has remained sealed for years,” the old man continued quietly. “No one has ever been able to open it.”

His gaze slowly returned toward her.

“Until now.”

A heavy silence filled the library.

Irene stared at the ancient book lying before her.

A strange feeling pulled at her chest.

As if the darkness inside her recognized it.

Then suddenly—

The whisper returned again.

Soft.

Cold.

Amused.

“Open it.”

Irene’s fingers trembled.

“No…”

“Open it.”

The black symbol on the cover began glowing brighter.

The candles flickered violently again.

The old librarian immediately stepped backward in fear.

“My lady…”

But before anyone could react,the book slowly opened by itself.And from within its dark pages, a thick black mist began to rise.