Eight years ago, in the Kingdom of C.

On a beautiful sunny day, everything seemed like it would go peacefully and happily as usual. But maybe, today was not like that. Suddenly, the sky darkened, along with deafening thunderbolts crashing down upon the Kingdom of C. They caused explosive shocks that severely injured countless people—and even took many lives.

Not only that, to make matters worse, there were also... massive clouds of molten lava falling from the sky down into the kingdom. Fires spread and erupted everywhere, forcing people to flee for their lives. And all of these disasters were caused by the very hands of mages from other kingdoms—who manipulated these cruel acts.

Right after that, tens of thousands of soldiers on horseback charged straight into the kingdom. Then, a brutal massacre began in this Kingdom of C. Innocent civilians were mercilessly slaughtered and trampled upon, creating a scene of sheer tragedy. Because of that, waves of mages and soldiers had no choice but to go to the battlefield to respond.

But it seemed that the enemies outnumbered them heavily. As a result, they completely overwhelmed the mages and soldiers of Kingdom C, pushing the situation into greater and greater peril.

Keyla was also forced to witness this horrific sight. She had to watch her parents and siblings fall one by one before her very eyes. And her beloved kingdom was gradually destroyed and burned to ash in mere moments. Unable to endure such horrifying images, she kept crying and struggling, unable to bear the trauma.

– "No,... No way! Why is this happening? My family,... and my beloved kingdom,... Why,... Oh no... What is happening here....?"

Seeing that Keyla was clearly panicking and seemingly unable to control her emotions, a mage nearby consoled her, hugging and gently stroking her head to calm her down, trying to comfort her with soft words:

– "I truly understand how you feel! But right now, you have no choice but to accept this reality!"

– "So listen to me! You must get out of here quickly."

– "Keyla: But what about you?"

Hearing Keyla care and worry about him like that, the mage smiled gently and patted her head.

– "Thank you for worrying about me! But don't worry, I can take care of myself."

– "Besides, do you know something? Honestly, you're actually luckier than the rest. Do you know why?"

Keyla shook her head, clueless.

– "Because up until this very moment, you're still alive. That's why you must take advantage of this luck—to escape and survive, understand? Only then will your loved ones,... your parents,... be able to rest in peace."

As soon as the mage finished his sentence, an explosion erupted from afar, making him frown and rush toward the source.

– "Tch! I have to go now. You'll have to take care of the rest yourself!"

– "Keyla: Wait... Wait, sir!"

Seeing that Keyla was about to chase after him, the mage turned back and shouted:

– "Run now! Or you'll die! Got it?!"

Having no other choice, she obeyed the mage's words and turned away, running as tears streamed endlessly down her cheeks—until she finally reached the refugee zone, along with the remaining survivors of Kingdom C.

*Several days later*.

– Finally, the people of Kingdom C arrived at the refugee area—Kingdom D. Upon arrival, they were provided with full housing and supplies. But it seemed that Keyla didn't feel very comfortable here. Probably because, no matter what, there's no place... better than one's own home. But now that she had no home to return to, she had no choice but to stay here.

Time flew by, and eventually she turned seven—old enough to attend school at a place called "The Academy of Magic." On her first day, Keyla saw many parents happily walking their children to school hand-in-hand. But she didn't have that. It made Keyla deeply sad, because on a day this important... she had no one by her side.

While lost in that thought, suddenly... the figure of someone else appeared—someone also walking alone, just like her. That girl walked past Keyla, making her unable to look away, as she thought: "Maybe this girl... is a bit like me too." She had jet-black hair, gently curled at the ends, and fierce red eyes full of attitude. This made Keyla want to follow her and talk right away. But since it was their first meeting, she felt too shy and didn't know how to approach her.

As Keyla stepped into the academy, she saw the place was decorated in a unique and eye-catching style. It sparked her curiosity and excitement with all its strange, beautiful scenes. Just as she was lost in admiration, the school bell suddenly rang—startling her and making her quickly grab her books and rush to class.

When she got to the classroom door, everyone inside was still running around, playing, and chatting. The teacher hadn't arrived yet, which made Keyla breathe a sigh of relief and say:

– "Oh! Thank goodness."

She quickly entered to find a seat. But it looked like... all the seats were taken, which made her very confused about what to do. Suddenly, by chance, she noticed there was still one seat left—at the very back. And the person sitting there... was none other than the girl she saw earlier. This filled Keyla with joy, and she rushed over.

– "Hey! Is it okay if I sit here?"

The girl, who had been talking to the person in front of her, turned when she heard Keyla. She replied:

– "Go ahead!"

Right then, the teacher entered the classroom. The whole class stood up and greeted her in unison:

– "Good morning, teacher!"

– "Teacher: Good morning, everyone! Please take your seats!"

Following the teacher's command, everyone sat down. Keyla quickly turned and asked the girl:

– "What's your name?"

– "Me? My name's Cẩm Đan. What about you?"

– "Keyla: My name's Keyla!"

– "Cẩm Đan: I see! Nice to meet you. I hope we can become friends from now on!"

– "Keyla: Really?"

– "Cẩm Đan: Of course!"

– "Keyla: Pinky promise?"

– "Cẩm Đan: Yup! I promise—I don't break promises, don't worry!"

And just like that, the two of them pinky-swore, sealing their very first promise as friends.