"I am the strongest wizard in this city!" I pointed my magical wand onto the Karuma Panda, firing a blue ring of magic.

By the effect of the spell that I cast, the Karuma Panda tossed over the ground for several meters. A black liquid started dripping from the deep scars that I gave it.

"You know what, you stupid panda, I am going to make you pay for everything you've done!" I smirked as I flipped my magic wand in my hand while watching the panda suffer on the surface of the road.

"Karu wait! I am going to help you!" Paikek opened his angelic wings and moved beside me, having a broad smile on his face.

"I wanna help too." Bomyu cracked his finger joints and came beside us, sharpening the spikes on his back. He ran his hand through his hair, and his fringe fell over his forehead.

"Don't forget to count me in, guys! Seanyung stepped up showing his purple hair and purple tail.

It gave me goosebumps when the four of us walked as a team towards the Karuma panda in the middle of the road surrounded by Apple trees.

We looked just like the figures I had been seeing on the mirrors and blurred windows. The four animal-like creatures I saw on the subway train and at the Komorebi cafe were actually a representation of us.

The Karuma Panda split itself into pieces forming a shadow hurricane again. We were ready for an attack but the shadow hurricane passed through us.

I turned my back, seeing that the shadow hurricane transformed back into the panda form again. It began running away from us.

"Don't let it escape." I suggested as I began chasing it.

The mighty blew onto us, fading the shadows of the Karuma panda in the gloom. I kept running but the Karuma Panda turned into a shadow and disappeared in the darkness of the night.

"It's gone!" I gasped when the shadows of the Karuma Panda wasn't there anymore.

"There's no way to find it now." Seanyung put his wand back into his bag.

"We were so close to capturing it." I sighed.

Even though the Panda disappeared in the dark, its darkness stayed. I felt a pain in my chest while I felt my cat ears dropped down. At the same time, Paikek's wings, Bomyu's spikes and Seanyung's tail disappeared.

Mrs Kimiko's magic academy was on the other side of the road, so we reached there quickly.

I looked up to the sky seeing the last star shining on its own, then I knocked on the door of the magic academy.

"I think she is asleep." I assumed, after noticing that the door was locked.

"It's not actually night time. Remember someone used time magic." Seanyung reminded.

"Makes sense." I nodded as I tried to force open the door of the magic academy.

While we were waiting in front of the magic academy, I noticed someone staring at us behind the trees. She lowkey looked like Mrs Kimiko herself.

"Isn't it Mrs Kimiko?" I asked, pointing my finger to the woman behind the tree.

"Yes, it's her." Bomyu spoke in a low voice tone, and Paikek nodded.

I slowly stepped towards the woman behind the trees, then I heard someone calling my name.

"Karu!"

When I turned my back, the door of the magic academy was open and Mrs Kimiko was holding the door. The woman behind the tree was no longer there.

"Mrs Kimiko, I thought you were-" I faltered in confusion.

"Come on, my boys. Come in." Mrs Kimiko let us inside the building which seemed the same as it was before.

"Mr Kimiko sorry for the inconvenience. We lost our home and I was wondering if you could let us stay with you for a while. Please." I asked her politely and with a little hesitation.

"I will do anything to help you." Mrs Kimiko smiled lively, as she picked up some car keys from her white bag.

"Thank you so much." Paikek bowed a little to show respect to Mrs Kimiko.

"But, I got a better idea."

Four of us stood, staring at her face without blinking.

"Follow me." Mrs Kimiko kept smiling as she walked out of the magic academy building.

I made eye contact with Seanyung, he didn't have any idea either. And, four of us got out as we followed her.

There was a small red car, parked near the building. Mrs Kimiko unlocked the car with the keys and she started the engine. My friends and I went inside the car; I took the passenger side seat and they sat at the back.

"Put your seatbelts on." Mrs Kimiko advised, and I put on my seatbelt.

She checked the wing mirrors as she started to drive. The night was bringing darkness over the streets of the city where nobody seemed to be around, not even the silent people.

"Mrs Kimiko, where are we going?" I asked as I watched the stoplights turning green.

"There is a nice hotel around here. I will book your rooms."

"No, no, no! You don't have to book for us." I immediately refused as I didn't want her to pay the prices.

"Karu is right! Right? We don't want to stay at a hotel." Paikek lifted his eyebrows.

"Alright, guys." Mrs Kimiko smiled, "Let's go to my house. But, you can't reject this one."

"Okay, thank you, Mrs Kimiko." I accepted as I didn't have any other choice.

She drove the car through empty streets till we reached an underground car park. It was extremely dark and there barely were a few cars.

We got out of the car and entered a lift which then took us to the eleventh floor. Mrs Kimiko's flat was new and the walls were cream coloured. We entered her house which had a long corridor.

"Your house is so big!" Paikek was amazed.

"Good news is that I have my own room and it leaves you two bedrooms. Pick which one you want." Mrs Kimiko showed us the rooms, one of them had a yellow door and the other's door was green.

"Who wants to stay with me here?" Paikek immediately opened the yellow door, we all knew that his favourite colour was yellow.

"Why don't you get the same roommates as when you were kids." Mrs Kimiko suggested.

"Yeah, I remember. I used to stay with Karu, Seanyung had his own room and Bomyu was staying with Yonsan." Paikek recited.

"Yonsan isn't here anymore." Bomyu remarked.

"How about I stay with Bomyu and Paikek stay with Karu." Seanyung put in, as he suggested.

"Nice idea!" Paikek beamed.

"Yeah." I agreed.

"I am very sleepy. Goodnight everyone" Bomyu waved his hand as he got inside the blue room with Seanyung.

"Bye!!" Paikek flashed his teeth as he ran through the yellow door, and I went in behind him.

The room was small but there were two double beds inside the room but looking identical with white bedsheets on them. The lights of the other skyscrapers and buildings were looking amazing from the window of the room.

"You are my roommate again!" Paikek chuckled as he hugged me very tightly.

"Yeah, I've been waiting for this moment." I laughed.

Suddenly, all the lights went off. I couldnt see anything so I turned on my phone's flashlight.

"What's happening?" I asked Paikek.

"I don't know. Is it a blackout?" Paikek was confused.

"Guy's, let's go to the living room." Bomyu suggested who was at the door of our room with Seanyung.

Paikek and I went to the living room with Bomyu and Seanyung. The living room had a large space and a window which we could see the view of the city. However, it was all dark as all the buildings had their lights off.

"Are you guys okay?" Mrs Kimiko went to the living room holding a light candle in his hand.

"Yeah, we are." Paikek nodded.

"Mrs Kimiko, what's happening? So many bad things happened recently; the stars disappeared, a ghost attacked me, then Karuma Panda, and the book is gone. I am so confused." I questioned, asking everything in my mind.

Mrs Kimiko sighed as she sat on the couch in the middle of the living room, putting the candle onto the table.

My friends and I sat around her, looking at her face as we waited for an explanation from her.

"It's a long story." Mrs Kimiko looked outside.

"But, it's your right to know. So, I will explain." She took a deep breath and she started telling us:

"It all started many years ago...