Chapter 1: The Letter of Black Flame

Jae-min didn’t expect much from his first day at Wraithborne Academy.

He’d seen the news. Heard the stories.

“Only cursed children go there,” people whispered. “Those born with tainted talents.”

He hadn’t known he had a talent.

Until his mother burned to death in front of him.

And he didn’t scream.

He only watched.

The envelope came two weeks after the fire.

Black paper. No return address. Wax seal shaped like a screaming skull.

[Jae-min Park. You have been selected. Attendance is not optional.]

He should’ve been scared.

He wasn’t.

He packed his things, left a note for the foster center, and boarded the train before sunrise.

He didn’t know the name of the city he arrived in.

Only that the sky above it was always red.

Wraithborne Academy stood at the edge of the world.

A castle made of ash and bone. With iron gates that bled when opened.

At the entrance stood a woman in mourning black.

She had no eyes.

But she spoke his name anyway.

“Welcome, Jae-min. Your curse sleeps for now. But not for long.”

He didn’t ask how she knew.

He followed her through the twisting halls.

Each wall was lined with portraits—students who’d gone mad, disappeared, or exploded.

Literally.

The dorms weren’t numbered.

They were named.

His door read: Sin-Eater.

Inside, there was one bed. One desk. One mirror.

And one rule, written in flame on the wall:

[Never speak your curse aloud. Or it will answer.]

He lay down.

Closed his eyes.

And dreamed of fire.

Again.

But this time, someone else was burning.

And they were calling his name.