The morning sun painted Seoul's skyline in hues of amber and rose gold, casting long shadows across the pristine courtyard of Seraphim High School. Cherry blossom petals danced on the gentle April breeze, creating a scene so ethereally beautiful it seemed plucked from a fairy tale. Students in their crisp navy uniforms moved through the campus like living poetry, their laughter echoing off the modern glass buildings that stood tall against the azure sky.
Zephyrian Kae stood at the imposing iron gates, his midnight-black hair catching the sunlight in ways that made it seem almost supernatural. His amber eyes, flecked with gold that seemed to shimmer with ancient wisdom, surveyed the school before him with a mixture of curiosity and something deeper—a strange sense of familiarity that he couldn't quite place. At eighteen, he possessed an otherworldly charm that made heads turn wherever he went, though he remained blissfully unaware of the effect he had on others.
"Well, this is it," he murmured to himself, adjusting the strap of his leather messenger bag. The transfer paperwork felt heavy in his blazer pocket, but not as heavy as the inexplicable weight that had settled in his chest the moment he'd seen the school's name. Seraphim High School. Why did those words send shivers down his spine?
As he walked through the gates, the cherry blossoms seemed to fall more heavily around him, as if nature itself was welcoming him home. Students paused in their conversations to steal glances at the newcomer, whispers following in his wake like ripples in a pond.
"Did you see that new guy?"
"He's so handsome it's almost unfair!"
"I heard he transferred from Busan. Wonder why he came here?"
Zephyrian's lips curved into a gentle smile. If only they knew he'd been asking himself the same question for weeks. The decision to transfer had come to him in a dream—a vivid, haunting dream where a voice soft as silk had whispered, "Come home, my love." He'd woken with tears on his cheeks and an overwhelming urge to find this place, though he'd never been to Seoul before in his life.
The main building loomed before him, its architecture a perfect blend of traditional Korean elements and modern design. Curved rooflines reminiscent of ancient palaces crowned walls of gleaming glass and steel, while ornate columns bore intricate carvings that seemed to tell stories of love and loss, triumph and tragedy. Something about those carvings made his heart race, though he couldn't fathom why.
"Excuse me, are you lost?"
The voice made him turn, and Zephyrian found himself face-to-face with a boy about his age with spiky brown hair and mischievous dark eyes. The stranger's uniform was slightly rumpled, his tie askew, and there was a smudge of what looked like chocolate on his cheek. Despite his disheveled appearance, his smile was warm and genuine.
"I'm Orion Lim," the boy continued, extending his hand with a grin that could have powered the entire school. "Professional troublemaker, amateur philosopher, and part-time human disaster. You look like you could use a friend, and I happen to be accepting applications for the position of 'guy who shows the mysterious transfer student around.'"
Zephyrian couldn't help but laugh—a rich, melodious sound that seemed to make the very air around them shimmer. "Zephyrian Kae. And yes, I suppose I am a bit lost."
"Zephyrian? Dude, that's like the coolest name ever. Sounds like you should be ruling a kingdom or something." Orion's eyes sparkled with mirth. "Come on, let me guess—you're here to steal the hearts of every girl in school, aren't you? With a face like that, you'll have them lining up before lunch."
Heat crept up Zephyrian's neck. "I'm not really interested in—"
"Ah, the mysterious type! Even better. You know what? I like you already. Stick with me, and I'll make sure you survive your first day at Seraphim. Fair warning though—this place is weird. Like, really weird. Last week, Jinwoo swore he saw a ghost in the art room, and don't even get me started on the strange symbols that keep appearing on the blackboards."
As they walked toward the main entrance, Orion continued his cheerful chatter, pointing out various landmarks and sharing gossip with the enthusiasm of a seasoned tour guide. Zephyrian found himself genuinely enjoying the boy's company—there was something infectious about Orion's energy, something that made the strange weight in his chest feel a little lighter.
"—and that's the art building over there," Orion was saying, gesturing toward a graceful structure that seemed to glow in the morning light. "Home to our resident artistic genius, Lunaria Shin. Girl's got talent that'll make you question everything you thought you knew about beauty. Her paintings are so lifelike, people say they can hear the subjects breathing."
Lunaria. The name hit Zephyrian like a physical blow, stopping him dead in his tracks. His vision blurred for a moment, and for one heart-stopping instant, he could have sworn he heard that same silk-soft voice from his dreams whisper, "My beloved."
"Dude, you okay?" Orion's concerned face swam back into focus. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I'm fine," Zephyrian managed, though his voice came out rougher than intended. "Just... the name sounds familiar."
"You know Lunaria? How? She's been here since freshman year, and you just transferred in." Orion's eyes narrowed playfully. "Unless... wait, are you one of those guys who researches the school before transferring? Did you look up all the pretty girls online?"
"No!" Zephyrian's denial came out more forcefully than he'd intended, causing several passing students to stare. He lowered his voice, his cheeks burning. "I mean, no. I don't know why the name sounds familiar. Maybe I heard it somewhere."
Orion studied him for a long moment, then shrugged. "Weird coincidence, I guess. Anyway, you'll probably meet her soon enough. She's friends with basically everyone—hard not to be when you're that talented and that gorgeous. Plus, she's got this laugh that could cure depression and a smile that makes you believe in magic."
The description sent an odd thrill through Zephyrian's chest, followed immediately by a strange pang of what felt almost like... longing? Which was ridiculous. He'd never even met this girl.
They entered the main building, and Zephyrian was immediately struck by the soaring ceilings and marble floors that gleamed like mirrors. Sunlight streamed through massive windows, casting rainbow patterns across the walls where it caught the edges of crystal chandeliers. The architecture was even more stunning inside, with graceful arches and delicate frescoes that seemed to tell stories in languages he'd never learned but somehow understood.
"First stop, the office," Orion announced, leading him down a hallway lined with portraits of distinguished-looking individuals who seemed to watch their progress with knowing eyes. "Gotta get your schedule and all that bureaucratic nonsense. Then I'll show you to your first class—please tell me you're not one of those academic overachievers who takes all the advanced courses."
"Actually..." Zephyrian pulled out his schedule, which he'd received via email the night before. "Advanced Literature, Advanced Mathematics, Advanced Chemistry, Advanced History—"
"Oh, come on!" Orion threw his hands up in mock despair. "Why are all the cool guys ridiculously smart? It's like the universe has a personal vendetta against average students like me."
Their banter was interrupted by a commotion from up ahead. A group of students had gathered around something, their voices raised in excitement and concern. As they pushed through the crowd, Zephyrian caught sight of what had captured everyone's attention.
On the pristine white wall, someone had drawn an intricate symbol in what looked like silver ink. The design was complex—interwoven circles and lines that seemed to pulse with their own inner light. Looking at it made Zephyrian's head spin, and for a moment, he could have sworn he heard the faint sound of chanting in a language that predated memory.
"What is that?" a girl whispered.
"It wasn't there yesterday," another student replied. "How did someone draw it so high up? And what kind of ink glows like that?"
"It's probably just a prank," a boy said, but his voice lacked conviction. "Some kid with glow-in-the-dark paint."
Zephyrian stared at the symbol, his heart pounding. He'd seen it before—he was certain of it. But where? In a dream? In a book? The certainty was maddening in its incompleteness.
"Weird, right?" Orion appeared at his elbow, apparently unfazed by the supernatural artwork. "This is what I was talking about. Strange stuff's been happening all semester. The janitor swears he's not cleaning these symbols off anymore because they just reappear the next day."
Before Zephyrian could respond, the crowd began to disperse as teachers arrived to investigate. The symbol seemed to dim as more adults approached, as if it were shy of authority figures. A maintenance worker with a bucket of cleaning supplies shook his head ruefully as he began scrubbing at the wall.
"Come on," Orion said, tugging at Zephyrian's sleeve. "We'll be late for homeroom, and trust me, you don't want to meet Mrs. Kang when she's in a bad mood."
They hurried through the corridors, passing classrooms where students were settling in for the day. The normal sounds of a school morning—shuffling papers, scraping chairs, muffled conversations—should have been comforting, but Zephyrian found himself listening for something else. Something that felt just out of reach.
"Here we are," Orion announced, sliding open the door to classroom 3-A. "Home sweet home for the next year."
The classroom was bright and airy, with large windows that looked out onto the school's central courtyard. Students in neat rows of desks looked up as they entered, and Zephyrian felt the familiar sensation of being studied. He was used to attention—his unusual appearance and quiet demeanor had always made him stand out—but something about the way these students looked at him felt different. More intense. More... searching.
"Ah, you must be our transfer student," came a crisp voice from the front of the room. Mrs. Kang was a stern-looking woman in her fifties with sharp eyes and an even sharper smile. "Class, we have a new student joining us today. Would you like to introduce yourself?"
Zephyrian moved to the front of the classroom, acutely aware of every pair of eyes following his movement. "Hello, I'm Zephyrian Kae. I transferred here from Busan. I look forward to getting to know all of you."
A murmur ran through the classroom—whispers of appreciation from the girls, sizing-up glances from the boys. But it was the empty desk by the window that caught his attention. Something about it seemed significant, though he couldn't say why.
"Excellent," Mrs. Kang said. "You can take the seat next to—"
The classroom door slid open with a soft whisper, and time seemed to slow to a crawl. A girl stepped into the room, and Zephyrian's world tilted on its axis.
She was breathtaking—not in the conventional sense, but in a way that stole the breath from his lungs and made his heart forget how to beat. Her hair was a cascade of ebony silk that caught the light like liquid starlight, falling in gentle waves to her waist. Her eyes were the color of midnight oceans, deep and mysterious and so familiar it made his chest ache. Her skin seemed to glow with an inner luminescence, as if she were lit from within by some celestial fire.
But it wasn't her beauty that made him stagger—it was the recognition that hit him like a physical blow. He knew this girl. He'd loved this girl. He'd died for this girl.
The memories crashed over him in a wave of overwhelming emotion. A moonlit garden. Whispered promises. The scent of jasmine and the taste of tears. The cold bite of steel and the warm flow of blood. A voice crying his name as darkness claimed him.
"Zephyrian?" The girl's voice was a whisper, her midnight eyes wide with shock and something that looked like hope. Her books tumbled from nerveless fingers, hitting the floor with a sound like thunder in the sudden silence.
He took a step toward her, his hand reaching out of its own accord. "Lunaria?"
The name fell from his lips like a prayer, like a promise, like a benediction. And in that moment, with the morning sun streaming through the windows and the cherry blossoms dancing outside, two souls found each other across the centuries.
The classroom erupted in whispers and gasps, but Zephyrian heard none of it. His world had narrowed to the girl before him, to the recognition in her eyes, to the impossible rightness of this moment. They stood frozen, hands almost touching, hearts racing in perfect synchronization.
"I..." Lunaria's voice broke, and she pressed a trembling hand to her lips. "I've been dreaming about you."
"And I about you," he whispered back, his voice rough with emotion. "Every night. Your voice calling my name."
Mrs. Kang cleared her throat loudly, breaking the spell. "Miss Shin, please take your seat. Mr. Kae, you may sit..." She gestured vaguely, seeming as affected by the moment as the rest of the class.
But Zephyrian barely heard her. As Lunaria bent to gather her fallen books, he noticed something that made his blood run cold. There, peeking out from beneath her school blazer, was a thin silver chain. And hanging from that chain was a pendant—a crescent moon intertwined with a star, the exact same symbol he'd been drawing in his notebooks since he was a child.
The same symbol that had appeared on the wall that morning.
The same symbol that had been carved into the stone above their tomb in another lifetime.
As their eyes met again, Zephyrian knew with absolute certainty that their story was far from over. In fact, it was just beginning.
Outside, the cherry blossoms fell like snow, and somewhere in the distance, he could have sworn he heard the sound of ancient laughter—cold and calculating and infinitely patient.
The game, it seemed, was afoot.