Curse of Hope

[SCENE: ECLIPSE SANCTUM — CELESTINE'S CHAMBER — NIGHT] · [VISUAL: A dimly lit stone chamber. A faint red glow from several candles illuminates the room. Hera sits across from Celestine, looking increasingly bored.] · [NARRATION] · For the past three months, Hera had repeated the same monotonous training routine until boredom finally pushed her to speak. · HERA: · “What is the task?” · CELESTINE: · “There is a boy named Soul. He is a level 1 assassin. I want you to gather every piece of information you can about him.” · [VISUAL: Hera's eyebrows rise slightly. A faint, amused smile appears.] · HERA: · “Okay, I didn’t know you could joke, Celestine. Now tell me, what’s the real assignment?” · CELESTINE: · “Miss Celestine, and no, I am not joking.” · [VISUAL: Celestine maintains a calm expression and stares directly into Hera's eyes.] · CELESTINE: · “This is your real assignment.” · [VISUAL: CLOSE-UP — Celestine's crimson eyes. Her gaze is calm but firm.] · [NARRATION] · The seriousness in her crimson gaze made it clear she meant every word. · HERA: · “Then I’m not taking it. Give it to one of those three instead.” · [VISUAL: Hera immediately stands and turns toward the door.] · [NARRATION] · To someone of her caliber, a level 1 assassin was insignificant. Being assigned to investigate one felt like an insult to her abilities. · [VISUAL: Hera walks toward the door with her usual faint smile.] · [NARRATION] · She walked toward the door while maintaining her smile, but just as her hand touched the handle— · CELESTINE: · “Hera. Take your seat.” · [SFX: WHOOM] · [VISUAL: The atmosphere abruptly changes. A crimson glow spreads through the chamber.] · [NARRATION] · The temperature in the room seemed to rise instantly. · [VISUAL: Hera freezes with her hand still resting on the door handle.] · [NARRATION] · Even without turning around, Hera could feel those blood-red eyes fixed upon her. · [VISUAL: Behind Celestine, faint cinders begin drifting through the air. Her crimson aura slowly fills the dim chamber.] · [SFX: FSSSH...] · [NARRATION] · A chill crawled down Hera’s spine. · [VISUAL: Hera slowly turns her head, her smile becoming slightly tense.] · HERA: · “Miss Celestine, hurting students is against the rules. You remember that, right?” · CELESTINE: · “Yes.” · [VISUAL: Celestine's expression remains controlled.] · CELESTINE: · “That is why I am giving you one last chance.” · [VISUAL: CLOSE-UP — Celestine's crimson eyes. The calm restraint has disappeared.] · [NARRATION] · Her crimson eyes no longer carried calm restraint. · [VISUAL: A subtle but unmistakable killing intent fills the room.] · [NARRATION] · They carried intent. · [VISUAL: Hera's smile disappears completely.] · [NARRATION] · For the first time since entering the room, Hera’s smile vanished. · [NARRATION] · Over the past three months, she had only seen Celestine as a composed instructor who valued discipline and decorum. · [NARRATION] · She had almost forgotten that the woman before her was a level 9, grade 5 assassin. · [VISUAL: Hera looks at Celestine seriously.] · [NARRATION] · Though their levels were equal, the gap in experience, skill, and rank between them felt immeasurable. · [VISUAL: Hera slowly walks back to her chair.] · [SFX: CREAK] · HERA: · “If you insist this much, how could I refuse?” · [VISUAL: Hera sits down with a composed expression. Her voice remains steady, but a tiny bead of sweat is visible near her temple.] · [NARRATION] · Her voice remained steady, completely hiding the fear that had frozen her moments earlier. · [VISUAL: Celestine places a black leather file on the table between them.] · [SFX: THUD] · CELESTINE: · “Here is his profile.” · [VISUAL: Hera picks up the file and opens it.] · [NARRATION] · Hera opened the file and skimmed through the first page. · [VISUAL: CLOSE-UP — Her eyes moving across the written information.] · [NARRATION] · After only a few lines, her smile returned. · HERA: · “A DLX?” · [VISUAL: Hera looks up, deliberately watching Celestine for a reaction.] · [NARRATION] · She looked up, trying to catch a reaction from Celestine, but her expression remained unchanged. · [VISUAL: Celestine remains completely expressionless.] · [NARRATION] · Deciding to finish reading later, Hera bid her goodnight and left the room. · [VISUAL: Hera exits through the door.] · [SFX: CLICK] · [VISUAL: The door closes.] · [SCENE TRANSITION] · [VISUAL: Celestine remains alone in the chamber.] · [VISUAL: Her expression twitches slightly.] · CELESTINE: · “This damn brat…” · --- · [SCENE: ECLIPSE SANCTUM — HERA'S ROOM — NIGHT] · [VISUAL: A private stone chamber. A bed sits against one wall, while a wooden chair and small table occupy the other side.] · [VISUAL: Hera enters, shuts the door behind her, and casually tosses the black leather file onto the bed.] · [SFX: THUMP] · [VISUAL: She stretches lazily before dropping into her chair.] · HERA: · “This isn’t fair, Celestine.” · [VISUAL: Hera leans back comfortably.] · HERA: · “Dragging me into your personal matters…” · [PAUSE] · [VISUAL: Her eyes drift toward the file.] · [VISUAL: She reaches over and picks it up.] · HERA: · “Still, the first test is tomorrow. I should at least get a basic understanding of my target.” · [VISUAL: Hera opens the file again.] · HERA: · “Though, do I really need to waste this much effort?” · [VISUAL: A playful smile returns.] · HERA: · “He’s only level 1. I could probably threaten him into telling me everything himself.” · [VISUAL: Her smile fades slightly as she considers the situation.] · HERA: · “She wouldn’t have assigned me if it were that simple.” · [VISUAL: Hera's eyes narrow with curiosity.] · HERA: · “So then, Soul…” · [VISUAL: CLOSE-UP — Hera's eyes.] · HERA: · “Are you actually worth my time?” · [VISUAL: A faint grin.] · HERA: · “Let’s find out.” · [VISUAL: She begins reading carefully.] · HERA: · “Level 1. Grade 1 DLX. Above-average physical strength. Rarely speaks.” · [VISUAL: Hera pauses.] · [VISUAL: Her eyes narrow slightly.] · HERA: · “Was personally acquainted with the Goddess for five years before her ascension…” · [VISUAL: Her expression changes from casual amusement to genuine interest.] · HERA: · “Oh?” · [VISUAL: She leans slightly closer to the file.] · HERA: · “So you knew her personally.” · [VISUAL: A curious smile.] · HERA: · “Maybe I can learn something useful from you after all.” · [NARRATION] · She continued reading. · [VISUAL: Several pages of the file are shown in sequence.] · [NARRATION] · Apparently, the students in Soul’s dormitory had suffered nightmares almost every night after he arrived. · [NARRATION] · The situation became so severe that multiple students claimed they saw Soul within their dreams. · [VISUAL: QUICK FLASH — Dark silhouettes of frightened students sleeping.] · [VISUAL: QUICK FLASH — Soul standing silently within a distorted dream.] · [NARRATION] · Eventually, the academy was forced to move him into a separate room. · [NARRATION] · After that, the nightmares stopped completely. · [VISUAL: Hera's smile slowly widens.] · HERA: · “Interesting…” · [VISUAL: She turns to the next page.] · HERA: · “Poor communication and social awareness.” · [VISUAL: Hera's eyebrow lifts.] · HERA: · “Unable to understand common jokes or puns.” · [VISUAL: She continues reading.] · HERA: · “But despite that, possesses unusually deep analytical thinking and exceptional deduction skills.” · [VISUAL: Hera pauses again.] · [VISUAL: Her expression becomes more thoughtful.] · [VISUAL: She turns another page.] · [NARRATION] · Another report caught her attention. · HERA: · “Yesterday, Mr. Max revealed information regarding the academy’s secret recruitment process…” · HERA: · “An act strictly forbidden by academy rules.” · [VISUAL: Hera's eyes move down the page.] · HERA: · “When confronted, he admitted he did so because he wanted to get rid of Soul.” · [VISUAL: Hera leans back slightly.] · [NARRATION] · Hera leaned back slightly. · [VISUAL: Her playful expression disappears for a moment as she processes the information.] · [VISUAL: She reaches the final section of the report.] · [TEXT PANEL — REPORT] · “I have personally interrogated him three times. Each time, he appeared completely normal. · Your task is to determine the nature of his repulsive presence and investigate whether he possesses any malicious intent. · You have one week.” · [VISUAL: Hera slowly closes the file.] · [SFX: THUMP] · [VISUAL: She looks toward the mirror.] · [VISUAL: Hera begins playing casually with a strand of her hair, her expression becoming increasingly intrigued.] · HERA: · “Unlike us, Max is a warrior.” · HERA: · “Team spirit and bravery are the core of his identity…” · [VISUAL: Her smile slowly grows.] · HERA: · “And yet…” · [PAUSE] · [VISUAL: CLOSE-UP — Hera's eyes, filled with dangerous curiosity.] · HERA: · “He chose to abandon Soul.” · [VISUAL: Hera smiles.] · HERA: · “You’re not boring at all, Soul.” · --- · [SCENE TRANSITION: NEXT MORNING] · [SCENE: ECLIPSE SANCTUM — CENTRAL TRAINING GROUNDS] · [VISUAL: A massive outdoor training arena surrounded by stone structures. Hundreds of students stand in organized formations.] · [NARRATION] · The next morning, all the students gathered within the central training grounds of Eclipse Sanctum. · [VISUAL: WIDE SHOT — Seven rows of students arranged according to rank and level.] · [NARRATION] · Seven rows had been arranged according to rank and level. · [VISUAL: Elevated stone seats overlooking the arena. Instructors and honored guests sit above the students.] · [VISUAL: Celestine steps forward.] · [SFX: TAP] · CELESTINE: · “Good afternoon, students.” · [VISUAL: Her voice carries across the entire training grounds.] · CELESTINE: · “First of all, I would like to praise the dedication and hard work each of you has shown throughout your training.” · [VISUAL: Students listen attentively.] · CELESTINE: · “Effort deserves reward, and that is why these examinations are held every year.” · [PAUSE] · CELESTINE: · “The first test will last three days.” · [VISUAL: Students exchange subtle glances.] · CELESTINE: · “During this period, you will compete in four separate tasks.” · CELESTINE: · “Your performance in each task will determine your total score.” · [PAUSE] · CELESTINE: · “The top three students will receive the Silver Bracelet.” · [VISUAL: A silver bracelet is displayed.] · [SFX: MURMUR] · [VISUAL: A quiet wave of excitement spreads through the crowd.] · [NARRATION] · A quiet wave of excitement spread through the crowd. · CELESTINE: · “Give it your all.” · [VISUAL: Celestine looks across the students.] · CELESTINE