Ludwig left the tower that evening, the cool night air brushing against his skeletal frame as he made his way back to the academy. The road was quiet, the usual hustle and bustle of the day replaced by an eerie stillness. The solitude gave him time to reflect, and he decided to check on something he had been saving for later.
He waved his hand, and the Umbra Codex materialized in front of him. The ancient book floated in the air, its dark pages fluttering as if alive. Ludwig’s hollow eyes scanned the pages, his curiosity piqued.
The first page displayed a drawing of a shadowy creature—a mix between a cat and a dog, its form fluid and indistinct. It was the same Umbral Hound that had guarded the book when Ludwig first encountered it. The symbols surrounding the drawing were illegible, their meaning lost to him. For a moment, Ludwig felt as though the hound’s glowing eyes were watching him from within the pages, its presence palpable.
He turned to the second page, which depicted one of the Guards of Tibari, their form shadowy and imbued with dark energy. The symbols here were fewer than those on the Umbral Hound’s page, but they were no less mysterious.
The third page turned on its own, revealing a drawing of the Knight King of Tibari. Unlike the previous pages, this one had no symbols, just the imposing figure of the knight in his corrupted glory.
Ludwig frowned, his frustration evident. “I’ll need to figure out a way to revive that Knight King,” he muttered to himself. “But I’m not proficient enough… being a necromancer is great and all but you can’t be that just because of luck or some divine finding you get from some ancient tomb…”
He sighed. Unlike the heroes of tales who end up discovering an overpowered item from the get-go, he got dropped in a world where he needed to learn everything by himself. It wasn’t easy and it was hard work. You can’t expect to get something overpowered easily here. Then again, he had the codex, the chains, and the lantern… he wasn’t going to complain that he didn’t have a broken skill or spell to summon the dead at will. That part, he’ll have to slowly learn by himself.
With a wave of his hand, the Umbra Codex vanished, and Ludwig continued his journey to the academy.
When he arrived at the academy gates, the same old man who always stood guard greeted him with a knowing smile. “Ludwig, you sure took your time in the Black Tower,” he said, his voice warm but tinged with curiosity.
Ludwig nodded. “I had some things to tend to with Master Van Dijk,” he replied, his tone calm.
The old man’s expression grew serious. “Go on now, enter. The academy is in a bit of disarray right now, so be careful.”
Ludwig frowned. “What’s going on?”
The old man chuckled, his eyes twinkling with mischief. “It wouldn’t be fun if I were to tell you right now, would it?”
Ludwig didn’t press further. He stepped through the gates and into the academy grounds, his senses on high alert. The atmosphere was different—quieter, more tense. Unlike the chaotic energy he had grown accustomed to, the academy felt subdued, almost unnaturally so.
As he made his way toward the sword training grounds, he noticed something unusual. The area was cordoned off, with several students wearing blue armbands patrolling the perimeter. One of them approached him, his expression stern.
“This is off-limits. Why are you here?” the student demanded.
Ludwig’s hollow eyes met the student’s gaze. “What’s going on?” he asked, his tone calm but firm.
Another student, older and more authoritative, joined the first. “You’ve been living under a rock or something?” he said, his tone laced with sarcasm.
“Kinda,” Ludwig replied. “I was in the Black Tower for the past week. What happened here? Why is the arena barred off? And where is Professor Joana?”
The two students exchanged glances, their expressions a mix of surprise and suspicion. “You really don’t know?” one of them asked.
“No,” Ludwig said, his tone steady.
A third student, a girl with a no-nonsense demeanor, approached. She wore the same blue armband as the others.
“Are you Ludwig Heart?” she asked, her voice sharp.
“Yes,” Ludwig replied. “How do you know that?”
“The student council knows enough,” she said, her tone dismissive. “You’ll have to come with us. We need to verify your alibi.”
Ludwig’s frown deepened. “Alibi? What’s going on here?”
The girl’s expression grew serious. “There’s been a murder in the academy—another one. Since you’ve been accused before of the murder of Thomas Vondel, we’ll need to verify things some more.”
Ludwig’s hollow eyes narrowed. “I’ve been in the Black Tower for the past week,” he said, pulling out a communication crystal. “If you want, I can get Master Van Dijk to vouch for me.”
The girl hesitated, her expression conflicted. “What were you doing in the Black Tower?” she asked, her tone skeptical.
“None of your business,” Ludwig replied, his voice calm but firm. “It’s something Van Dijk asked me to do.”
Before the girl could respond, a familiar figure approached—Vondel Ravi, the towering, gorilla-like man. Thomas Vondel’s Older brother. His expression was grim as he looked at Ludwig.
“It’s not him,” Vondel said, his voice low and gruff. “The kill was too brutal. This boy doesn’t have the guts, nor do I think he’d have the power to do something like that. I also got notified of his presence in the Black Tower for the whole past week by one of the workers there.”
The girl nodded, her expression softening slightly. “We apologize for any inconvenience we caused you,” she said, giving a light bow. “But this remains an excluded zone. Please leave the area.”
Ludwig nodded, his expression calm. “Sure. Where can I find Professor Joana?”
The girl hesitated, her voice dropping to a whisper. “I don’t think you’d want to meet her right now.”
“How come?” Ludwig asked, his tone sharp.
The girl’s expression grew somber. “The person who died was one of her new students—the best one, apparently.”
Ludwig’s hollow eyes widened slightly. “What the hell is going on in this academy?” he muttered under his breath.
As he turned to leave, he noticed Joana leaning against a nearby wall, her expression solemn. Her eyes met his, and she gestured for him to follow.
“Little Monster,” she said, her voice low and heavy. “Come with me.”
[Sudden Quest!]
The notification flashed before Ludwig’s eyes, and he knew one thing for certain: trouble was brewing.