A black-winged horse stood there. The other students couldn't see it. Aurelia could. The creature that pulled the carriage—a Thestral—was visible only to those who had witnessed death. A skeletal body with nothing but skin stretched across it, a black horse. Its wings folded, facing quietly ahead. Aurelia slowly reached out her hand. Her fingertips came within a few centimeters of the Thestral's neck——and stopped. She pulled her hand back. The carriage held only Aurelia. The other students who had disembarked at Hogsmeade Station had split off into boats and separate carriages. It seemed a special route had been arranged for the transfer student. The Scottish twilight air was cold, and wind seeping through the window gaps carried the faint scent of grass. The carriage moved forward along the cobblestone road. And beyond the mist——a castle appeared. (……It's huge.) Aurelia couldn't help but murmur it in her mind. Three times bigger than she'd imagined. Seven stories tall, with towers she couldn't even count. The castle's reflection rippled across the lake's surface. In the orange light of the Scottish dusk, the stone walls rose up in black silhouette. She immediately composed her expression. This wasn't sightseeing. This place was simply somewhere to keep her head down and survive. That was all she needed to remember. Aurelia turned her gaze from the window. This world had no electricity. Night roads were lit by torches, letters were delivered by owls. Fireplaces powered by magic, humans flying on broomsticks. Her previous school—Durmstrang Institute of Magic—had been the same. But that place was somewhere she could never return to. The carriage slowly came to a stop. A figure who appeared to be a teacher stood before the entrance. Aurelia checked her cloak's clasp and opened the door. --- The moment Aurelia stepped into the Great Hall, she paused for just an instant. There was no ceiling. Or rather, precisely speaking——the sky was reflected on the ceiling. Tonight was cloudy, so heavy gray clouds drifted slowly overhead. Even knowing it was conjured by magic, it felt strange, as if she were outside. Torches lined the walls, their flames flickering gently. Four long tables were packed with students, their voices creating a buzz that reached all the way to the ceiling. Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff. Banners in each house's colors hung on the high walls. There were no other transfer students. This ceremony was being held for Aurelia alone. The teacher picked up a tattered hat. A hat worn brown and shabby with age, clearly ancient. The Sorting Hat——the hat that every student who entered Hogwarts wore, the one that determined which house they belonged to. "Aurelia," the teacher called her name. The Great Hall grew slightly quieter. Aurelia looked straight ahead and sat down in the chair. The hat was placed on her head. It smelled of old cloth. The next moment, a low voice echoed in her mind. 'Hmm... this is...' The hat's voice. 'Unusual. A very deep darkness. Not mere darkness——this is...' The hat fell silent. (Don't move. Don't let your emotions waver.) Aurelia directed her consciousness inward. Something was throbbing. Like a pulse, there was something pushing back from inside. She suppressed it. Pressed it down. Five seconds. Ten seconds. Thirty seconds passed. The Great Hall began to murmur. "Why is it taking so long?" "I've never seen the hat struggle with sorting." "Who is that girl?" Voices reached her. Aurelia didn't move. And then the hat spoke, its voice trembling slightly. "——Slytherin." That was the moment. All the torches in the Great Hall flickered violently at once. The shadows that should have extended left and right from Aurelia's body ran in the opposite direction. They stretched toward the wall, shooting out. In the direction opposite to the light source. "Huh, what?" "The shadow moved backwards." "Did you see?" The students cried out. Aurelia tightly sealed the lid on her emotions. She stood up and walked toward the Slytherin table. One step, then another, straight ahead. No one applauded. --- As she descended the stone staircase, the air changed. The deeper underground she went, the more greenish the surroundings became. As she walked down the corridor being guided, a faint light wavered on the walls. Beyond the windows lay the bottom of the lake——as if viewed from beneath the water, dark water and fish shadows were visible. A fish slowly crossed by. "...I won't welcome you, but I'll at least show you the passages." Turning toward the voice, there was a faintly glowing figure in the corner of the corridor. A ghost. A pale-faced, clearly ill-tempered male ghost leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "I'm the Slytherin house ghost. Don't ask my name," "[cold]...I wasn't asking," "The dining hall is up. The infirmary is further up. The common room is straight ahead from here. If you get lost, don't ask me," With that, the ghost slipped through the wall and vanished. (The Slytherin ghost has terrible manners.) Aurelia tilted her head slightly. When she opened the door to the common room, leather sofas and silver candelabras came into view. The walls were black stone, and greenish light filtered down from the low ceiling. Outside the window was the same as before——the bottom of the lake. Fish shadows slowly crossed by. The older students glanced at Aurelia and immediately looked away. Three female students who appeared to be her year stood near a bed. The first one approached. She had a friendly smile, but her eyes weren't smiling. "[sarcastic]You came from Durmstrang, right?" "[serious]Yes," Another student quickly continued. "Durmstrang specializes in teaching Dark Magic, doesn't it?" "A transfer is pretty rare. Did something happen?" Aurelia placed her luggage on the bed. "[cold]Various things," With just that answer, she began organizing her belongings. The three girls exchanged glances and moved away. --- When the lights went out, the room darkened. After a while, whispered voices came. "Hey, doesn't that transfer student seem kind of creepy?" "The hat froze during sorting. I've never seen that before," "And her shadow moved backwards... she's not normal," Aurelia pulled the blanket up over her head. She clenched her fist. (I know. I'm not normal. I know that better than anyone.) In the darkness, eyes closed toward the ceiling. --- She woke in the middle of the night. Her chest was throbbing. Not a sharp pain, but something pushing back from inside. (Press it down. Nothing happened today.) The moment she thought that, memories flooded in. ——White stone corridors. Durmstrang's practice room. Standing before a large cauldron. During a potion-making lesson. The student sitting next to her had said quietly, "Your magical power is weird, you know." That was all it took. The lid on her emotions slipped. The next moment——black smoke poured from her arms. A pillar of pure black mist swelled up to the ceiling. The walls turned black and charred. Shelves flew apart. The teacher screamed and fled. Three students were seriously injured. She had just stood there, staring at her own hands. Black smoke seeping from her arms, unable to stop it. Not knowing what to do. ——The memory cut off. Aurelia was now gripping her pillow. She looked at her fingertips. Black haze was seeping through faintly. She quickly clenched her fist. It disappeared. Slowly fading away. (It's okay. Nothing happened today.) Durmstrang was over. That practice room, those fleeing teachers——none of it was here. This was Hogwarts. No one knew. No one must ever know. Aurelia slowly exhaled. This was the Obscurus——the dark power dwelling within her, born from suppressing her magical ability. It overflowed when emotions wavered. Anger, fear, sadness. Hosts typically only lived until around age ten. Living to seventeen was almost unprecedented. Why she was still alive, Aurelia herself didn't understand. There was only one thing she knew for certain. As long as she didn't let her emotions waver, it wouldn't go out of control. --- Unable to sleep, dawn was approaching. She sat before the small window of the dormitory. Outside was the lake's bottom——water swaying slowly. Greenish light flickered on the walls, and fish shadows passed by. When she pressed her forehead against the glass, it was cold. In the distance, the dark treeline of a forest was visible. The Forbidden Forest. The primeval woodland that spread southeast of Hogwarts, off-limits to students. A low howl drifted over. From the direction of the forest. Aurelia tensed for a moment, then relaxed. This was a school. She wasn't in the forest. It was fine. Inside her chest, the black smoky power still ached. It hadn't subsided. She was only pressing it down. Classes would start tomorrow. Potions, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts. All required a wand. There would be moments when emotions wavered. If she failed, those around her would react. And she would react to that. (It's okay.) She'd been doing this for three years since she was fourteen. Even after the incident, she'd managed to survive. She could do the same here. Just keep her head down. Don't get close to anyone. Graduate without hurting anyone. That was all she needed. Aurelia continued staring out the window. Her jet-black short hair reflected faintly in the glass. A slender 170-centimeter frame draped in a black cloak. White hands gripping the window frame. Hands that were always cold. Deep amber eyes, and for just a moment——black haze passed across them. Then it vanished. Only the sound of rippling water continued, quietly.