The night was cold, and the wind cut sharply through the empty streets.

  Above the city, the moon hung full and unnatural—its light not silver, but a vivid shade of cyan, bathing rooftops and stone paths in an eerie glow. Shadows stretched longer than they should have, bending along the alleys like living things.

  Akitsu Shouga ran through the streets, his footsteps light and controlled. He was dressed entirely in black, blending into the night as though he belonged to it. His breath came steady despite the cold, each movement precise, instinctive.

  Behind him, Seraphine Orion floated effortlessly, her form illuminated faintly by the strange moonlight.

  “I feel like this is utterly useless,” she said, yawning mid-sentence. “What kind of mysteries are there? You can’t just randomly be attracted to something you don’t even know exists.”

  “Yeah,” Akitsu replied without slowing down, “but I’m curious. If you’re worried about me, don’t be. I’ll do whatever I can to not get into trouble.”

  “And who said I’m worried about you?” Seraphine scoffed. “It would be better for me if you were dead!”

  “Thanks for your concern,” Akitsu said sarcastically.

  He slowed to a stop.

  The alleyway stood before them—narrow, unlit, and swallowed by shadow. It was the same place he had noticed earlier, the one that had tugged at his instincts for reasons he couldn’t explain.

  “This is the place?” Seraphine asked, glancing around. “It looks pretty normal to me…”

  “Who knows,” Akitsu replied. “Maybe we’ll find something.”

  They stepped inside.

  The darkness thickened unnaturally as they moved forward, swallowing sound and depth until the alleyway seemed to stretch far beyond what should have been possible. Then, suddenly, the space opened.

  At the center stood a single object.

  A well.

  Old stone bricks spiraled downward into endless blackness, its rim worn smooth as if countless hands had once rested upon it.

  Seraphine burst into laughter. “You found nothing here except just a well!!”

  Akitsu ignored her.

  He approached the well slowly and peered down.

  There was nothing beneath—no reflection, no glimmer of water. Just darkness. Deep. Absolute.

  “Let’s just go home,” Seraphine said impatiently. “There’s obviously nothing here!”

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Akitsu sighed. “Alright. But I’ll come back here later, just in case.”

  He turned around—

  And froze.

  A man stood in the middle of the alleyway they had entered from.

  “…Who are you?!” Akitsu demanded.

  The man stepped forward into the cyan moonlight.

  He had black hair and crimson eyes that reflected the glow unnervingly. A black hooded cloak draped over his frame, and at its back was a faint skull emblem, barely visible yet unmistakable.

  “I’m not here to harm you,” the man said calmly. “I just want you to hear my words.”

  “What are you talking about?” Akitsu snapped. “Only psychopaths appear out of nowhere and say things like that to random people!”

  He stepped back.

  The cold stone of the well pressed against his heels.

  “Akitsu Shouga,” the man said softly, “please do not ever fall into this well. It is very dangerous. Please step away.”

  Akitsu’s eyes narrowed. “So you’re going after this well, huh? What if I jump inside it? What will happen then?”

  The man’s expression darkened.

  “If you jump inside it, you’ll never be able to return to this world ever again,” he said. “So please—do not do anything that costs your life. I am not trying to harm you. I’m just trying to warn you.”

  He paused.

  “That’s all I’ll say for now. Goodbye.”

  The man turned and walked away, his figure dissolving into the darkness of the alley as though he had never existed.

  “…Who was that?” Akitsu muttered. “Was he only here to warn me?”

  “I don’t know,” Seraphine replied slowly. “But he isn’t any ordinary person. I think he even noticed me—even though I can’t be seen by regular beings.”

  Her ears flattened.

  “He’s certainly powerful. However… for some reason, I can’t sense anything from him.”

  Akitsu shivered. “Let’s get out of here. This place is creeping me out!”

  They hurried back through the pitch-black passage and emerged once more into the city streets.

  That night, both returned home.

  The next morning, Akitsu woke early—before sunrise.

  The sky was still dim as he ran through the quiet streets, his thoughts heavier than his steps.

  “A nice run will help me relax,” he muttered. “After that encounter with that man… who was he? And what was he doing there at that time?”

  He stopped.

  The alleyway stood before him again.

  “…What was that well about?” Akitsu murmured. “Should I go check it out again? Maybe I’ll take a little peek and go back home.”

  He entered.

  And stopped.

  The space beyond was empty.

  No well.

  No stone rim.

  Nothing.

  “…Where is the well?” Akitsu whispered. “Wasn’t it here yesterday?”

  His heartbeat quickened.

  “There’s no way a well could disappear within just a few hours… That’s impossible. Or was I hallucinating?”

  He let out a nervous laugh.

  “Yeah… maybe it was just a dream.”

  He turned and ran out of the alleyway.

  The sun rose on the horizon as he sprinted back toward the mansion.

  Akitsu rushed upstairs and entered his room, quickly changing clothes.

  Seraphine Orion lay sprawled on his bed, completely relaxed.

  “How long are you going to stay like that?” Akitsu asked.

  “We stayed up last night,” Seraphine replied lazily. “So I deserve an extra hour of sleep.”

  “…Wait,” Akitsu said slowly. “We really went out last night?”

  “Yeah,” she replied. “What about it?”

  “I thought it was a dream,” Akitsu said. “When I went back to check on the well a couple hours ago, it was gone. It’s like it vanished without a trace.”

  “That’s impossible,” Seraphine scoffed. “A well can’t magically grow legs and walk away like it’s no big deal.”

  She paused.

  “…Oh, wait. I think I did see a well walking in the desert a couple thousand years ago, didn’t I?”she mumbled.

  “…You’re not helping.”

  “Well then,” Akitsu said, “if you don’t believe me, be my guest and go to the alleyway we went to last night. The well is gone. Believe me when I say it’s gone!”

  “No worries,” Seraphine said with a menacing smile. “Maybe we can make a legend about the walking well and publish it as a book.”

  “No,” Akitsu replied immediately. “We won’t. I won’t allow you to do it… It costs too much.”

  “Whatever! You’re no fun.”

  Akitsu ignored her and slipped into his academy uniform.

  Yet as he adjusted his collar, a single thought lingered in his mind—

  If the well was real… then where did it go?