Chapter 5; The voices of the forgotten

The classroom slowly settled into silence.

The morning chatter faded as students opened their notebooks and arranged their textbooks across their desks.

Lucas quietly took his usual seat beside the window.

He rested his backpack on the floor before absentmindedly staring toward the crimson sky beyond the glass.

Even from here...

The colossal portal dominated the Sacramento skyline.

It never moved.

Never changed.

Yet somehow...

It always felt alive.

"...One day,"

Derek muttered as he dropped into the seat beside him,

"I'm seriously going to punch whoever keeps messing with you."

Lucas smiled faintly without looking away from the window.

"You've been saying that for months."

"And one day I'll actually do it."

Lucas chuckled.

"I know."

A few rows ahead, Billy adjusted his oversized glasses before nervously organizing the books Lucas had helped him pick up earlier.

He hesitated before turning around.

"...Lucas?"

Lucas looked up.

Billy scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Thanks..."

"For helping me."

Lucas simply smiled.

"It wasn't a big deal."

Billy lowered his head.

"It was to me."

Before Lucas could answer—

The classroom door slid open.

Professor Helene Stan entered carrying several textbooks beneath one arm.

She wore a navy-blue blazer over a white blouse, her chestnut hair neatly tied behind her shoulders.

Her calm emerald eyes swept across the classroom.

"Good morning, everyone."

"Good morning, Professor Stan."

A gentle smile appeared on her face.

"I hope everyone completed yesterday's reading."

Several students groaned.

She laughed softly.

"I'll take that as a no."

The room erupted with quiet laughter.

Even Lucas couldn't help smiling.

Professor Stan possessed a warmth that made every classroom feel safe.

She placed her books upon the desk before writing neatly across the whiteboard.

History of the Saint Era

Lesson 14

The Rise of the Saint Hunter Society

"For five years," she began, "humanity has fought to survive."

She slowly walked before the class.

"Many people believe Saints alone saved our world."

She shook her head.

"They're mistaken."

"Behind every Saint stood ordinary people."

"Doctors."

"Scientists."

"Teachers."

"Soldiers."

"And families who refused to lose hope."

The classroom remained silent.

Professor Stan smiled gently.

"Courage isn't measured by power."

"Sometimes..."

"The bravest people are those who have none."

Lucas lowered his eyes.

Those words...

Reminded him of his mother.

Professor Stan turned another page in her notes.

"Lucas."

He looked up.

"Would you read the next paragraph?"

"...Yes, Professor."

Lucas stood.

He picked up the history textbook.

His quiet voice filled the room.

"The Saint Hunter Society was officially established during the Second Year of the Saint Era to coordinate the defense of humanity against the Devouring Shadows. Since then, countless Saints have sacrificed their lives protecting innocent civilians..."

Professor Stan nodded approvingly.

"Very good."

Professor Stan smiled.

"You may sit."

Lucas nodded.

As he lowered the book—

Something felt...

Wrong.

A strange chill spread through the classroom.

His smile slowly faded.

His fingers tightened around the edge of the desk.

The air suddenly became unbelievably cold.

He slowly looked toward the classroom clock.

The second hand...

Stopped.

Tick.

Silence.

Professor Stan's marker slipped from her fingers.

It never reached the floor.

Lucas's eyes widened.

"...No..."

Every student froze exactly where they were.

No one blinked.

No one breathed.

Outside the window...

Birds remained suspended in midair.

Leaves hung motionless above the trees.

Even the drifting clouds had stopped moving.

The entire world...

Had frozen.

Lucas slowly stood.

His breathing became uneven.

"...Why..."

"...Why is it happening again?"

Then...

A whisper reached his ears.

"...Help..."

His entire body stiffened.

Another voice followed.

"...Please..."

Then another.

"...It hurts..."

Lucas slowly turned toward the back of the classroom.

The empty desks...

Were no longer empty.

A middle-aged man sat quietly with a massive wound across his chest.

Beside him...

An elderly woman clutched a faded photograph against her heart.

A little girl hugged a burnt teddy bear.

A teenage boy in a bloodstained school uniform stared blankly at the floor.

One by one...

More figures appeared.

Between the desks.

Near the windows.

Beside the walls.

Dozens.

Then hundreds.

Transparent.

Silent.

Broken.

Lucas instinctively stepped backward.

"...No..."

The little girl slowly lifted her head.

Her empty eyes met his.

"...You can hear us..."

The whispers multiplied.

"Help me..."

"My family..."

"It hurts..."

"I don't want to disappear..."

"Please..."

The classroom filled with desperate voices.

Each one carried unbearable grief.

Lucas grabbed both sides of his head.

"Stop..."

The whispers grew louder.

"I said stop..."

More spirits appeared.

Some had missing limbs.

Others bore wounds too terrible to look at.

A soldier without half his face.

A mother carrying the ghost of her child.

A priest kneeling in silent prayer.

Every one of them...

Looked only at Lucas.

The whispers became screams.

Thousands of voices flooded his mind all at once.

Their pain.

Their fear.

Their despair.

Everything crashed into his consciousness like a tidal wave.

Warm blood slowly trickled from Lucas's ears.

His vision blurred.

His knees weakened.

"I..."

"I can't..."

His heartbeat thundered.

The voices became unbearable.

"STOP!!"

His scream echoed through the frozen classroom.

CLACK!

Professor Stan's marker struck the floor.

Time resumed.

Students jumped in surprise.

Several turned toward Lucas.

Others stared in complete confusion.

Professor Stan hurried forward.

"Lucas!"

He stood in the middle of the classroom.

Breathing heavily.

Blood slowly ran down both sides of his face.

The ghosts...

Had vanished.

Only the terrified faces of his classmates remained.

Lucas stared blankly ahead.

His lips trembled.

"...They were here..."

The classroom fell into complete silence.

Lucas didn't wait for anyone to ask.

He already knew what they would think.

Crazy.

Delusional.

The weird boy again.

He had heard it all before.

Without another word, Lucas grabbed his backpack from the floor and walked toward the door.

"Lucas, wait!"

Professor Stan called.

He never turned around.

BANG!

The classroom door slammed shut behind him.

Silence filled the room.

Professor Helene Stan stood frozen, staring at the closed door.

For a brief moment...

She could have sworn the room had suddenly become colder.

A strange unease settled deep within her heart.

As though something invisible had entered the classroom...

And left with Lucas.

Outside...

His footsteps gradually faded into silence.

Above Sacramento...

The colossal crimson portal pulsed once.

As if it had finally found the one it had been waiting for.

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