CHAPTER 3 – Reflection in the Mirror
810 Words
"All shadows are born from light. But not all light intends to save you."
It’s been three days since the mission in the Collapsed Zone.
And I haven’t slept well since.
Not because of pain. Not because of fear.
But because of something stranger: reflections.
Every time I pass a mirror, something seems… off.
My movements lag.
My eyes look darker.
Sometimes, my reflection doesn’t mimic me perfectly.
At first, I thought it was just a side effect of using Void Step too often.
But yesterday, while I stared into the bathroom mirror in the dorms…
My reflection smiled back at me.
I wasn’t smiling.
Class today felt quieter than usual.
Maybe because rumors of “Project 09” were starting to spread, even though the school was staying silent.
Still, some students had started glancing at me with suspicion.
A few even began to keep their distance.
I’ve always been used to being overlooked.
But this felt different.
It felt like people were backing away… in fear.
“You look like a zombie,” Zeke commented, sipping from a milk carton.
“Haven’t slept in two nights.”
“Void symptoms again?”
I nodded. “Feels like something’s stuck to me. Like… a trace.”
Zeke was quiet for a second, then pulled out his tablet. “I dug through the restricted library files. Found one term: Void Residue.”
I turned to him. “What’s that?”
“A dimensional imprint left by the Void Realm on a user’s body. Usually happens if a Void user stays invisible too long. Side effects? Minor hallucinations, identity confusion, and—”
He stopped reading.
“And…?” I asked, suspicious.
“And sometimes… entities from the Void can cross into the real world—through the user.”
I froze. “You mean like… possession?”
Zeke nodded slowly. “Or worse—you could start to change.”
That afternoon, I was summoned to the headmaster’s office: Professor Elgrave.
His room looked more like an ancient museum than an office. Tall wooden shelves, floating crystal orbs, and the scent of old ink mixed with incense.
Professor Elgrave was tall, silver-bearded, and wore a deep blue robe filled with Core symbols.
“Sit, Reno Arkan.”
I swallowed my nerves and sat on an old dragon-carved chair.
“You realize, of course,” he said, opening an ancient book, “that your power… is an anomaly.”
I stayed silent.
“Voidwalker Core. A power that was supposed to be extinct seventy years ago.”
He placed the book on the table. On the page was a drawing—someone in a black cloak, standing alone on a battlefield. Around them, corpses. And their body… was half transparent.
“Who is that?” I asked quietly.
“The First Voidwalker,” Elgrave replied. “His name was erased from history. He slaughtered five hundred soldiers in a single night. Undetectable. Unseen. Unstoppable. And then… he vanished.”
I swallowed hard. “I’m not like him.”
“Not yet,” he said sharply. “But his echo lives inside your Core.”
I stood up, frustrated. “I didn’t ask for this power! I don’t even know why I have it!”
“Precisely why,” he said calmly, “we’ll begin monitoring your development. Starting tomorrow, you’ll be enrolled in Aethra’s Special Surveillance Program.”
It felt like I was being punished for being myself.
As I reached the door, Elgrave called out once more.
“One thing, Reno. If you ever start to feel… not alone when you look into the mirror, report it immediately. Because it means the Void is opening its door.”
That night, I sat on the dorm rooftop. The stars were out, but my thoughts were dark.
Aria appeared silently, as usual.
“I heard Elgrave summoned you,” she said.
I nodded. “I’m an experimental specimen now.”
She sat beside me. We said nothing for a while.
“I’ve seen the First Voidwalker,” she said.
I turned sharply. “What?”
“Not in person. But… footage. When I was a kid, my father—a high arcane researcher—kept records. He didn’t just disappear. He could… erase existence.”
I held my breath.
“I thought that power was lost forever.
But then I met you.”
“And you’re afraid I’ll become like him?”
She looked at me. “No. That’s why I went to the Collapsed Zone.
To make sure… you wouldn’t be alone.”
Her words hung in the air. Then she stood.
“Tomorrow, there’s a Core Duel Simulation exam.
I’ll be your opponent.”
I froze.
She walked away, but before vanishing into the shadows, she said,
“Let’s see… if shadow can stand against light.”
[To Be Continued…]
- Writer
