After a long hour of travel, he finally reached his new university, nestled in a secluded corner, with a road that seemed to lead only to this institution. There were a few houses nearby, but it felt like the place was deserted. Along the way, greenery stretched as far as the eye could see, and the trees, so numerous and dense, barely let any sunlight through. But once he reached the end, it felt like escaping a dark, oppressive forest to find freedom. A solitary building stood at the heart of a vast plain. In the distance, an indistinct shape seemed to suggest the presence of another structure resembling a church, but from his position, he couldn't quite make out what it was.
Arriving late, he headed to the reception desk, but no one was there. For a moment, he was caught off guard, even wondering if he had simply gotten the date wrong. After checking, both the location and date were correct. Wandering through the hallways, he finally came across a cleaning lady who directed him to the teachers' lounge. There, he was sent to another room, where he finally found someone who could give him information. After enduring a few stern looks, he was finally handed his schedule along with the classrooms he needed to go to.
"So I have to go to AS."
He passed more than twenty rooms, each marked either with numbers or names. Along the way, he didn't come across a single person who could help him.
— Now that I've already been to the teachers' lounge, I wouldn't dare go back, especially after all the remarks they made, he muttered to himself. Hmm, what am I supposed to do now ?
He took advantage of his delay to explore the surroundings of the school, hoping to get a better sense of the layout. The campus consisted of two distinct L-shaped buildings, connected in a rectangular structure, though it wasn't possible to go directly from one to the other due to a metal door that was always locked. Only some professors had the key, but even they hardly ever used it. Instead, students had to go around through the courtyard.
One could easily imagine the frustration of the students, forced to descend three floors only to climb three more, when a simple door could have saved them the trouble. In fact, some professors had been assaulted over this issue, which explained why few of them carried the key on them.
At the entrance, the reception was on the right, while a central door straight ahead led to the courtyard. On the left stood a three-story building, containing classrooms numbered from C0 to C50. The other doors had no signs, and Tora didn't dare venture near them for fear of stumbling into a class in session.
For an unknown reason, at the far end of the second floor, there was a large door leading to a room about the size of two classrooms, completely off-limits to students. The door was barricaded, with a thick chain wrapped around the handles, secured by more than twenty padlocks to keep it shut.
The courtyard formed a large rectangle. At the far end stood the cafeteria, which had two stories, but neither seemed to contain any classrooms, as none of the doors were numbered. On the right, within the courtyard, four small rooms, numbered from TP0 to TP4, were accessible directly from the outside, along with the teachers' lounge, the storage room, and several other rooms that were off-limits.
Aside from the main entrance, there was no other way to enter or exit the building, as if its primary purpose was to confine its residents. There was also a metal door at the back of the school that led not inside, but to the basement, which was a rather intriguing design choice. A warning sign reading "No Entry" was plastered on the door, yet it wasn't locked.
Away from the main structure, an old, isolated building drew attention. It resembled a Wild West-style church, like those seen in old films, but four times larger and without a cross. It housed only a single large classroom, similar to an auditorium. The place exuded a sinister, almost oppressive atmosphere, reminiscent of a haunted house.
Inside, the vast and desolate space bore the marks of prolonged abandonment. Most of the chairs were overturned, forming disorderly rows. Their presence was intriguing, as no tables accompanied them, as if they had mysteriously vanished. The floor was littered with trash, likely remnants of impromptu student gatherings. Broken windows allowed drafts to sweep through, and shards of glass still lay scattered here and there. The door, completely torn off, now rested inside, positioned like a monument at the center of the room.