The morning sky over Velross city looked just like any other day, as if nothing strange had happened the night before. But for Reina, everything felt… off. She sat on the floor of her bedroom, still wearing the same clothes from last night. In front of her lay the glowing energy stone and the dagger—both pulsing like they were alive. The blood on the floor had dried, leaving behind a charred-looking triangle symbol burned into the wood. Reina stared at it all, eyes blank, mind scattered.
What the hell is happening to me...?
That day, Reina forced herself back into her routine. She hid the dagger in her crossbody bag, tucked the stone inside the inner pocket of her jacket, and made her way to campus. Her body moved, but her mind was stuck on last night's madness.
In class, her professor's voice blended with the background noise—lectures, gossip, thesis stress, all of it buzzing like static. But Reina felt like a ghost. Everything around her was dull, like someone had drained the color out of her world.
Mila, her friend, noticed something was off.
"You okay? You look sick."
"I'm fine," Reina replied shortly.
But then her hand brushed the desk surface—and a faint image of a triangle appeared, like it was drawn in mist. Her heart skipped. She pulled her hand back and tried to stay calm, pretending nothing happened.
Is the world... changing because of that stone?
That night, the voices returned.
Soft whispers, coming from the dagger.
They didn't sound threatening—more like gentle nudges. A strange kind of guidance, offering a way out of her miserable life. But Reina didn't hear them as "voices." They felt more like instincts... or maybe temptations.
"Desire... Hope... Ambition..."
She picked up the dagger and walked over to her mirror. Her reflection smiled—a twisted, knowing grin—while her real face stayed still. Startled, she threw the dagger across the room.
Her phone buzzed.
An email with no sender. Just one sentence:
"It's time to begin. You need a blood sacrifice."
The next day, after class, Reina spotted something that made her stop in her tracks.
On the rooftop of the library building, something glowed—floating in midair like an upside-down shooting star. The light shimmered in the same color as the energy stone in her pocket.
As she looked around, she noticed something else. A few people—just a handful—also seemed to glance in the same direction. Like they sensed it. A super-driven student. A street musician. A food vendor known for chasing fame. They all had something in common.
They were just like her.
Only the ambitious can see the stones...
That night, Reina dreamed again.
This time, she stood in a ring of stones under a dark sky. In front of her stood a tall, robed figure—an ancient, demonic presence. His voice echoed like thunder in a cave.
"You've touched the stone. You've held the dagger. Now, you must choose. The stone cannot return without blood."
Reina clenched her jaw. "Whose blood? Am I supposed to find someone to sacrifice?"
The demon stepped closer. "That's for you to decide. But don't wait too long. I promised to grant your wish... once it's done."
"You'll grant my wish... after I complete it?" she whispered, breathing hard.
"And I will keep my word," the voice answered firmly, with eerie confidence.
With desperation eating away at her, Reina began to seriously consider the deal. That night, she ran into someone familiar on campus—a philosophy professor, an old man once known for his integrity. Now, rumor had it he sold grades for cash.
They spoke in a quiet hallway, his voice oily, his eyes scanning her.
Someone like him... might deserve this, Reina thought.
But her hands trembled. Could she really take a life?
Then he reached for her inappropriately.
And just like that, her hesitation shattered.
She snapped.
Driven by rage and the whispers of Zareth, Reina grabbed him by the throat and squeezed. He choked, struggled, then collapsed unconscious.
Later that night, she dragged his limp, bound body to the rooftop—deserted and bathed in moonlight. Her hands shook as she pulled the dagger from her bag. Following Zareth's instructions, she cut his arm. Blood trickled out, and Reina used it to draw the triangle symbol on the floor. Every line felt heavy, like she was engraving fate itself.
The professor groaned—starting to wake up—but his mouth was gagged with thick cloth.
Reina laid his body outside the edge of the triangle.
She placed the energy stone in the center, then gently set the dagger beside it, letting the blade touch the blood-soaked floor.
"Tap the dagger three times, Reina," Zareth whispered in her head.
She looked up at the sky.
The wind suddenly stopped.
Then. Tap. Tap. Tap.
The air began to hum. The blood triangle lit up, glowing with dark energy. The lines pulsed and moved, pulling inward toward the center in a spiral.
The old man started thrashing violently.
His blood lifted into the air—sucked in by the symbol, drawn toward the stone and the dagger.
Reina took a step back, wide-eyed.
Tears welled up, but her lips didn't move.
A black portal opened above the triangle.
The stone floated upward and vanished inside it—followed by a hollow boom, like a door slamming shut in another universe.
The professor's body collapsed in a dry heap.
His skin was paper-thin, stretched over bone. His eyes stared blankly, unmoving.
Reina dropped to her knees, shaking.
"You did well, Reina," the demon whispered in her head. "It's done."
The next morning, news spread.
The professor had disappeared.
Some students claimed they saw bloodstains on the rooftop, but no one had any answers.
That night, Reina sat alone in her room, staring at the dagger.
It looked… different now. Dimly glowing. Charged with something dark.
She stood in front of her mirror again.
Staring at her reflection.
"You..." she whispered to the girl in the glass.
"Where are you now? Didn't you say you'd keep your promise?"
Her reflection grinned—before she did.