"Raagnol..."
"Raagnol..."
"RAAGGNOLL!"
Raagnol jolted awake.
His breath was uneven.
Sweat dripped down his face.
Fear was written all over him.
"Another nightmare?"
He turned and saw a girl standing beside his bed.
She walked toward the window and opened it. The breeze blew in, sweeping her long white hair to one side.
"Feeling better now?" she asked with a soft smile.
Raagnol simply nodded. He was still dazed on his bed. Even though the voices calling out to him had faded, he could still hear them echoing behind the old brick walls around him.
The girl walked away, reminding him that breakfast was about to start.
Slowly, Raagnol stood up and fixed his bed, matching it with the others lined up in the room.
Then he went to wash his face.
Just as he splashed cold water over his cheeks, a knock echoed from the front door.
Carefully, he stepped down the stairs one by one, then made his way to the door.
Before he could reach the handle, a woman had already opened it.
Raagnol arrived just in time to see two men standing outside, dressed in iron armor, clearly soldiers.
"Are you Madam Fyto, the caretaker of this orphanage?" one of them asked.
"Yes, I am. What's going on?" she replied.
"We're here to deliver a message. Lately, some villagers have spotted a suspicious individual lurking nearby. We believe it might be a magic user. So if you notice anything strange, please report it to us immediately."
Madam Fyto nodded in agreement. With that, the two soldiers left to continue spreading the warning around the village.
She closed the door gently, took a deep breath, and sighed as if releasing something she'd been holding in.
"Raagnol... why are you still standing there? Go join the others. Breakfast has started."
Raagnol gave a small nod.
Still with messy hair, he walked to the dining room.
The same girl from earlier was already waiting there. She frowned at him.
"You're so slow, Raagnol! Your food's getting cold... Come on, eat already!"
He pulled out a creaky wooden chair and sat down at the long table, surrounded by twelve other kids.
The cold brick walls bounced back the clatter of spoons and soft chatter.
He ate silently, lost in thought until he realized his plate was already empty.
"Hey, Raagnol… are you feeling better?" the girl beside him asked gently.
"Yeah… I think I'm fine now," he replied, setting down his spoon.
"Oh, and thanks, Leyko. For opening the window earlier."
The girl, Leyko, smiled wide.
She truly appreciated his thanks, and told him to talk to her if anything ever weighed on his heart.
After breakfast, Raagnol planned to clean the storage room as Madam Fyto had asked.
On the way, he passed her office and stopped.
There was a voice coming from behind the door. He moved closer, leaning in to listen.
It sounded like a girl, someone unfamiliar.
"Thank you, Madam… You saved me. I… I don't even know how to repay you..."
"I don't need anything in return," Madam Fyto answered. "I'm just doing what's right. Now… go. Before the soldiers come back."
A witch?
Is that girl a magic user?
Why is Madam Fyto hiding her? Isn't that dangerous?
Raagnol's mind raced.
He'd always believed protecting those who were cursed, tainted by forbidden energy, was a serious crime.
They were dangerous.
Silently, he backed away and continued toward the storage room, not wanting to get caught eavesdropping.
The floor was dusty and rough underfoot. He swept it clean, stacked the old boxes neatly, and opened both small windows to let sunlight in. The warmth hit his skin. A breeze rolled in. He felt calm again.
With his task done, he went to see Madam Fyto. He wanted to ask her about that girl.
Standing in front of her office door, he knocked.
No answer.
He knocked again.
Still nothing.
He tried the handle.
Unlocked.
Slowly, carefully, he opened the door.
No one inside.
He started to close the door… when something on the desk caught his eye.
A glint of silver.
Raagnol hesitated.
He knew stepping into someone's private room without permission was wrong.
But something in his chest pulled him forward.
He checked the hallway. No one around.
He took a slow step.
Then another.
On the desk lay a silver pendant with a blue gemstone in the center.
Raagnol picked it up.
Turned it over.
His heart skipped.
"Raagnol Thavanof."
That name was carved clearly into the back.
His full name?
He had never known he had a last name.
Suddenly, the voices returned.
The same ones from his nightmares.
He heard them.
Saw flickers of fire dancing around him.
His head throbbed. The room spun. The air grew hot, then cold, then hot again.
Panicked, he dropped the pendant.
Clink!
It rolled across the floor.
And stopped right in front of Madam Fyto's feet.
Raagnol looked up.
She stood frozen in the doorway.
"Where did you get that…?" she whispered.
Raagnol, still breathless, pointed to the desk.
Madam Fyto closed her eyes for a moment. Then sighed.
"...It seems the time has come to tell you the truth.
There's something you need to know… Raagnol."