The first day at the Celestial Academy passes by like a hazy dream. I attend classes, take notes, answer questions with a precision that surprises my professors. How could I not know the answers? I created this world, its rules, its history.
At the end of the day, as students scatter through the corridors, an announcement echoes throughout the building.
"Attention to all final year students. The Elemental Ceremony will take place tonight at midnight in the Great Hall. Attendance is mandatory."
I freeze in place. The Elemental Ceremony. How could I have forgotten? In my webnovel, it was one of the major events of the first narrative arc. An ancestral ceremony where each student discovers their elemental affinity, thus determining their course of study and future magical abilities.
"You look pale, Naver," remarks Ah-ra, who still stands beside me. "Don't tell me you're afraid of the ceremony?"
I shake my head, unable to explain the true source of my concern. In my story, June Van Naver was supposed to receive the Fire affinity—the most common, most basic element. Another way to emphasize his mediocrity despite his high social status. A public humiliation that reinforced his resentment toward Min-ho, destined to receive the legendary Aether affinity.
But now that I am June, what will happen? Will events follow the course I wrote, or has my presence already altered history?
"I need to prepare," I murmur before quickly walking away.
I spend the following hours in my room in the nobles' dormitory, frantically leafing through books I found among June's belongings. Manuals on elemental affinities, ancestral rituals, prophecies linked to the elements. Information I had invented from scratch, now printed in black and white before me.
At eleven o'clock, I leave my room, dressed in the white ceremonial robe that all students must wear for the occasion. In the corridors, other white silhouettes head toward the Great Hall. The atmosphere is electric, a mixture of excitement and apprehension.
The Great Hall is unrecognizable. The tables have disappeared, replaced by an immense ritual circle carved into the marble floor. Candles float in the air, casting flickering light on walls adorned with ancient tapestries representing the five primary elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Aether.
Students position themselves in a circle around the central pattern. I spot Min-ho on the other side, his face tense but determined. Beside him stand Jin-woo Choi, the martial arts genius, and Seo-yeon Kim, the heiress with exceptional magical talent. The three protagonists of my story, reunited.
Director Shin enters the hall, followed by professors, including the Master of Arcanes. All wear black ceremonial robes adorned with golden symbols. The director positions himself at the center of the ritual circle.
"For millennia," he begins in a grave voice that resonates throughout the hall, "the Celestial Academy has trained the elite of mages and warriors destined to protect our kingdom against the forces of darkness. Tonight, you will discover your true nature, the element that resonates with your soul."
He raises his hands and the ritual circle illuminates with a bluish glow. The five elemental symbols carved at the cardinal points of the circle shine in turn.
"Let the Elemental Ceremony begin."
One by one, students are called to the center of the circle. They place their hands on a crystal orb that changes color according to their elemental affinity. Earth: green. Water: blue. Fire: red. Air: white. And Aether, the rarest, most powerful: violet.
I watch with fascination as this ritual I imagined comes to life before my eyes. Each revelation is greeted with applause, sometimes surprised murmurs. As I had written, most students receive Fire or Earth affinity, the most common elements.
"Seo-yeon Kim," calls the director.
The young woman advances gracefully, her face impassive. In my story, she was supposed to receive Water affinity, rare and precious. She places her hands on the orb which illuminates... with a blue glow. As expected.
"Jin-woo Choi."
The athletic young man approaches with an assured step. Earth affinity in my tale, to complete the trio of heroes with complementary powers. The orb shines... green. Once again, conforming to my scenario.
"Min-ho Park."
A tense silence settles. Everyone knows Min-ho is a scholarship student, a "peasant" as some nobles called him. In my story, his revelation as bearer of Aether affinity was supposed to be the first major turning point, the moment when everyone would begin to see him differently.
Min-ho places his hands on the orb. For an instant, nothing happens. Then, slowly, the orb illuminates with an intense violet glow, brighter than all the previous ones. Exclamations of surprise and disbelief resonate through the hall.
"Aether," announces the director, his voice betraying his own stupefaction. "An affinity that had not been seen for more than a century."
Min-ho casts a triumphant look at me across the hall. I understand his satisfaction. In my story, this was the beginning of his ascension, the first step toward his hero's destiny.
Other names are called, other affinities revealed. And then...
"June Van Naver."
My heart accelerates. It's my turn. I advance toward the center of the circle, conscious of the gazes weighing on me. In my tale, this moment was supposed to be June's public humiliation, revealed as a simple Fire mage despite his noble status.
I place my trembling hands on the crystal orb. For a long moment, nothing happens. The orb remains desperately dark. Murmurs begin to rise in the hall. Is it possible? A student with no affinity at all?
And then, suddenly, the orb illuminates. But it's not the red glow of Fire that I expected. The orb shines with a color I've never seen before, that I never described in my story. A deep black, dotted with twinkling stars, like a piece of night sky imprisoned in crystal.
The director steps back, his face paling. "Impossible," he murmurs.
The Master of Arcanes advances, his eyes fixed on the orb with troubling intensity. "The Abyss," he says in a barely audible voice. "The forgotten element. The antithesis of Aether."
A deathly silence falls over the hall. I stare at the orb, hypnotized by this starry black glow. The Abyss? I never created this element in my story. It didn't exist in my world.
"The ceremony is over," declares the director abruptly. "All students are asked to return to their dormitories. Immediately."
As students begin to disperse in confused chatter, the Master of Arcanes grabs me firmly by the arm. "You," he hisses, "come with me."
He drags me out of the Great Hall, into a deserted corridor, then into a small room I don't recognize. A private study, filled with ancient books and strange artifacts.
"How is this possible?" he asks, his eyes scrutinizing my face. "The Abyss hasn't been seen since the Era of Shadows. Since the fall of the last Lord of the Abyss."
I shake my head, sincerely confused. "I don't understand either."
A disturbing smile stretches his lips. "Oh, I think you do, Architect. I think you understand very well."
That word again. Architect. A term I never used in my tale.
"Who are you really?" I ask, my throat dry.
"I am exactly who you created me to be," he replies. "The Lord of Despair. But the real question is: who have you become? For you are no longer simply Kim Cheol, are you? Nor quite June Van Naver."
My blood freezes. "How do you know that name? Kim Cheol?"
His smile widens, revealing teeth too pointed to be human. "This world you created... it has evolved far beyond your original manuscript. We have all developed consciousness, our own will. And some of us... some of us remember their creator."
He approaches, his voice reducing to a whisper. "The Abyss is not an element you created, that's true. It's the element that created you. It's the mark of the Creator in his own creation."
I back away, fumbling for the door. "I need to leave."
"Of course," he agrees with mocking courtesy. "But know this: your presence here has already changed history. The destiny you wrote for us is no longer set in stone. And the Abyss... the Abyss changes everything."
I leave the room stumbling, my mind in turmoil. In the deserted corridors, I encounter Min-ho who seems to be waiting for me.
"What was that, Naver?" he asks, his face oscillating between anger and confusion. "The Abyss? What's this nonsense?"
"I don't know," I reply honestly.
He stares at me for a long time. "Something has changed in you. I don't know what, but you're not the same anymore."
"People change," I murmur.
"Not like that. Not overnight." He approaches, his newly revealed Aether aura creating a slight violet luminescence around him. "Whatever you're planning, I'm watching you."
He walks away, leaving me alone in the dark corridor. I look at my hands, wondering what this affinity with the Abyss means. It wasn't in my scenario. It wasn't in my world.
This world I created is evolving, changing, developing its own logic. And I, its creator, am now caught in its gears, as powerless as any of my characters.
Or perhaps not. For if the Abyss is truly the mark of the Creator, then perhaps I still have a power I don't suspect. A power that could change everything.
I look through the corridor window, toward the starry sky that strangely resembles the glow of the orb when it revealed my affinity. The Abyss. The forgotten element.
My element.