Chapter 189: Playing Shadow Tag

Words : 1050 Updated : Sep 27th, 2025

Evaline: It had been over an hour. I had checked every corridor, every classroom, every lounge space in the South Wing which was basically an entire building reserved just for final-year students. And yet, there was nothing. No flicker of light under doors. No whispered voices or hurried footsteps. Not even warriors on night duty. There were just empty halls and eerie silence, the kind that clung to my skin like cold mist. The classrooms I passed still smelled faintly of chalk and old paper, but the rest of the building felt... abandoned. Dead. Each door I pushed open creaked just enough to make my skin crawl. The whole place reminded me more of a forgotten castle than a prestigious academy. And now, I was trudging through the North Wing, this was a space typically buzzing with students from the second and third years. I had checked all three floors. Nothing. No signs. No students. Just quiet. And more darkness. I should have turned back by now. It was nearly midnight. What was I even doing? Lurking around campus like a poorly-trained spy? I rubbed my arms as I wandered the connecting corridor toward the East Wing. My boots tapped against the cold tile floor, the sound echoing eerily around me. The North Wing was better lit than the South, but not by much. Half the lights were flickering dimly, and most were already off. The more I walked, the more I felt like a complete idiot. What was I even expecting? That I would just stumble upon some shady cult meeting in a classroom? That they would all be in black robes, chanting over candles and offering secrets on a silver platter? Stupid, I cursed myself. I should have listened to Kieran. He told me to stay out of it. Told me this group was dangerous. Told me to leave the dead alone. And I tried. I really did. But sleep refused to come tonight. The whispers I had overheard this morning - the fear in that senior girl’s voice, the way she said the word "dead" - they wouldn’t let go. So, here I was. Playing shadow tag with the night warriors and following a hunch that probably didn’t even matter. With a sigh, I stepped onto the outdoor corridor connecting North Wing to the East Wing, hoping that maybe a bit of fresh air would clear my foggy thoughts. And that’s when I saw it. A movement, just barely, it was a flash of motion at the far end of the building. I immediately pressed myself into the shadows beside the outer wall, my breath catching in my throat. Someone was there. And they weren’t walking casually. They were running. A student slipped into the side of a stone tower that was standing wedged between the North Wing and a small garden. I had always assumed it was a storage unit or just a leftover piece of architecture - one of those useless towers that were more for aesthetics than function. But then a second figure appeared. This one looked around quickly, like they were making sure they weren’t being watched, before they also slipped inside. My pulse started racing as I realized I had found them. I waited and saw another student dart inside the tower merely moments later. Then another. And one more after that. They were five in total. And just like that, the quiet returned. I didn’t move for a full minute, counting the seconds and scanning the area to make sure no one else was coming. No patrols. No lights. No more movement. It was now or never. I carefully crept out of the shadows and made my way across the open path to the tower. I tugged the door open an inch and slipped inside. This place was worse than the rest of the wings combined. It was dark, cold, and dusty. The air was smelling like stone and mildew. Not a single light flickered, and the only illumination came from a slit of moonlight through the high windows. There were no traces of the students. Only the fading echo of hurried footsteps - downward. Instead of heading up the spiral stairs, they had taken a narrow hallway leading to a basement staircase tucked behind an old wooden door. My instincts screamed at me to turn back, but my curiosity was louder. And so was my need to understand. Stupid! Absolutely stupid! But stupid things were exactly what people like me did. Right? I carefully descended the stairs, keeping close to the wall. My senses weren’t as sharp as a normal werewolf’s since I was wolfless after all, but I had learned to move silently, to rely on instinct when eyesight or hearing failed me. The staircase twisted tightly, and I could barely see past the first few steps. I gripped the railing, moving slowly, counting the turns. One. Two. Three. Then the basement opened up. A long, narrow corridor was stretched before me, with old iron sconces dotting the walls, long rusted over and unusable. There were doors on either side - some sealed shut with locks, others slightly ajar, revealing old shelves and dusty storage supplies. The sound of hushed voices drew me forward. At the end of the corridor, I noticed those give students slipping inside the final room. The heavy wooden door thudded shut behind them, muffling whatever conversation had started within. I can’t follow them in. That’s too risky. I glanced around, my eyes adjusting to the gloom. Then I spotted it. A window. It was small and square, tucked into the wall beside the last room, almost hidden behind stacked wooden crates and supply boxes. I quickly made my way over and crouched behind the boxes. With a bit of maneuvering, I was able to position myself behind them without being seen. The crates would keep me hidden from anyone coming down the corridor. And the window... I leaned in and pressed my ear to the wood. At first, all I heard was my own breathing. Then I realized the window wasn’t latched. I gently, so gently, slid it open a crack. Warm air rushed out, carrying the muffled sound of whispers, someone pacing, and the tension of a dozen breaths waiting to break.

Chapter 189: Playing Shadow Tag

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