Louis breathed heavily for couple of minutes, resting both of his hands on his knees. The bustling crowd moved around him, indifferent to his struggle.

  "Gods… i shouldn't have done that." Louis breathed out, taking another minute to steady himself.

  Louis knew that he shouldn't push himself too hard due to his weak body. Of course, he didn't have any choice. The train was about to set off in 30 minutes, and he was still far away from the station. So he decided to run as fast as he could.

  It took 15 minutes for him to finally arrive at the train station. Louis was all sweaty and sick-looking.

  After taking a few slow and deep breaths, he finally felt a little better. Suddenly, he heard the announcer's voice crackled over the speakers, barely audible over the crowd, announcing upcoming departures and delays.

  The Train to Nickola city is Delayed to 30 minutes!

  The Train to Genten is arriving in 5 minutes!

  The Train to Saint-Peters is arriving in 15 minutes!

  Fifteen minutes huh? I guess i have time to grab some coffee.

  Louis straighten himself and Adjusting his grip on his suitcase, he moved forward, taking a moment to observe his surroundings.

  The Hall of the train station was huge and had a symphony of sounds, Movements and Voices blending together. Passengers bustled about, some dragging heavy suitcases while others hurried to catch their departing trains. The place was also crowded with many types of people, Business Men, Students, Families, Elderly, and many more.

  The warm air reeked of a faint oil and metal, mixed together with a greasy aroma of fast food from nearby stalls. A hint of stale coffee lingered in the background. Louis could also smell the cigarettes somewhere.

  Louis sighed, It was just another typical Afternoon at the station, where time never seemed to stand still.

  After walking a bit more, finally arrived at the little coffee shop.

  [Lady Annabeth's Coffee House]

  He went inside and could immediately smell the air of coffee beans, baked breads and snacks.

  Ahh… Sweet home, Louis grinned to himself, nothing is better then having a croissant with nice Black Coffee— He paused, reconsidering. —Actually, let's go with a Cappuccino instead!

  Louis approached the counter and asked the young Lady with a polite smile.

  "Hallo, I'd like to have Annabeth's Strawberry-flavoured Croissant with Cappuccino please."

  He paused, reaching into his pocket before pulling out a sleek, silver-looking card.

  "With discount please." He added with a nervous chuckle.

  The Young Cashier smiled warmly,

  "sure!, that would be 9 Goldos and 57 Centos."

  Louis nodded, handing over the silver card first before reaching into his wallet. Once he had the cash, he placed it on the counter.

  "Thank you!"

  the young woman chirped as she scanned the card. But the moment she glanced at the screen, her expression changed.

  Her eyes widened.

  "O-oh! it's… Mustang…"

  She gulgs her saliva before she turns to him, her smile was now nervous-looking.

  "U-um..your order will be ready at any moment!" She gave back the silver card and a couple of change before spinning around hurrying off toward the kitchen.

  Louis watched her rushing away, sighing as he muttered under his breath, even though she was already gone.

  "Just take your time, i don't mind."

  I guess this is one of the things of being a member of The Great Nine Families. Louis sighed.

  Even tho Louis already got used to this treatment, he couldn't help but to silently feel irritated by it. He then simply shook his head and decided to move on.

  Knowing that his order would take a while, he found a chair which was close to the window and sat comfortably. Getting bored, he opened his suitcase and pulled out his red notebook.

  Louis opens the notebook and read silently for a bit.

  " 14.06.1578.

  It was Failure. But it was expected. Using the alchemy was something new to me, and I never had someone to teach me for it.

  And also because I failed the chemistry Class.

  But i did learn few things about this,

  It's pretty fascinating that using chemistry can make such incredible effects, mimicking a form of a–fake but Useful–magic,

  Even though I failed to cure my voidborn with alchemy, I'll try to learn and study more about it. I'm sure it will have some uses.

  That being said… I need to be more careful. I already managed to hurt myself once. Heh... I guess that famous quote really is true.

  That everything has a price..."

  Out of boredom, Louis flipped back a few previous pages in his notebook.

  " 27.04.1576.

  Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  That little runt Seth had the audacity to tell me that coconut-flavoured croissants are better than strawberry-flavoured ones.

  The nerve of that brat!

  Whatever. At least Ruth has good taste like me. Strawberry for life!"

  Louis stared at the words for a moment before his mouth twitched. Slowly, he buried his face in his hands, his cheeks burning with embarrassment.

  Was I seriously beefing with a six-year-old over pastries? Real mature, Louis. Real mature. Louis sighed, shaking his head.

  When suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a waitress approaching his table. She was young, pretty, and— judging by the nervous look on her face— clearly aware of who he was.

  "Here you go. Y-your Grace." she said hesitantly, carefully placing the cappuccino and the warm, sweet croissant in front of him.

  Louis nodded politely and she immediately left.

  He looked at the table and smiled cheerfully. he held the croissant and finally took a bite of that golden and flaky snack. He moans in satisfaction as he eats the rich, sweet and fruity masterpiece he was holding, savoring the divine taste.

  After few seconds, Louis finally flips to the latest page while still eating his croissant.

  " 24.08.1578.

  It's been a while since I wrote something here. I was little busy, attending a wedding party. Even though I don't care about Nickolas, auntie insisted that I should visit and congratulate him at least. so… after i went there, you can pretty much guess what happened.

  It was awkward.

  I could tell that my family didn't enjoy my company and to be honest, i didn't enjoy theirs either. I felt very suffocated to be with them every second or minute.

  Thankfully, big sis Barbara noticed and pulled me away, inviting me to the family library. It was Wonderful. I thanked her, and she left to rejoin the wedding.

  While exploring the library, I stumbled upon countless fascinating books—grimoires on all types of magic, summoning manuals, ritual guides, and theories on Essence Cores.

  I don't know why, but I had a strange urge to read them. Even though magic is useless to me.

  So, I studied. I copied down as much as I could into my notebook.

  Who knows? maybe one day it'll come in handy…

  Louis glanced at another notebook tucked in his suitcase. Unlike his personal one, this one contained everything— detailed methods, theories about Pillars, Essence, and various branches of magic.

  Pretty much everything he maneged to copy from that library.

  "If only i had more time." Louis chuckled lightly, " i guess this is enou– hm?"

  Suddenly, hushed voices stirred behind him— a whisper of gossip, just intriguing enough to catch his attention.

  "Hey, have you heard? the new war is about to break out." the young man whispered.

  The old man Beside him scoffed, he puts down his coffee cup on a table with a clink.

  "Let me guess– Omeria and kelpa? tsk, they been fighting for decades now!"

  "No, it's different," the third middle-aged man chimed in " it's between Lugobelia and telanish."

  "What!" the old man's eyes widened "Well… i suppose that was bound to happen. They've been on each other's necks for a while now. But tell me— what started it?"

  "What do you think? it's Mistborn" the middle-aged man sighed heavily and continued.

  "Ever since they fled their Doomed kingdom forty years ago, those Lugobelian folks have been seeking refuge in Telanish. Came beggin for safety, they did. But it didn't take long before they started protesting— demanding food, shelter, a place to call home. Bah! The government paid em no mind, same as always. And so, it's been dragging on for years now, like a wound that just won't heal."

  The man paused for a moment before continuing in an even lower tone.

  "But the reason? It's because one of the Lugobelians shot the Telanish's Emperor only son."

  Silence settled between them.

  "You can imagine how that went," the man sighed. "Even though the son survived the shot, The Emperor was furious. He had no choice but to declare war on Lugobelia."

  The middle-aged man let out a dry chuckle. "And that's not even the worst part. They say the Fog is dominating that place now… Poor bastards. Getting cornered by both the Telanians and the Mistborn. Tragic."

  "Gods.." the old man shook his head solemnly." typical Lugobelians, can't help but to cause trouble for others and themselves."

  Huh...interesting… I guess that's one of the reasons why Melissa was busy these past weeks, Louis thought, silently sipping his cappuccino.

  His Aunt Melissa might seem ordinary at first glance, but in reality, she was anything but. A Rank Master with a Epic Essence, she had once been a Guild Association Captain in the Mansa Kingdom.

  Now? She works as a assistant to the Ministry of Magia, ever since she became a mother.

  First Noha and now Lugobelia? I feel like those Mistborn Creatures are getting active as the years go by.

  Louis couldn't help but to frown from that news. He shook his head and decided to forget about it for now.

  Louis leaned a little closer to listen more but also made sure he wouldn't look suspicious.

  Meanwhile, the youngest couldn't help but to ask.

  "Hey, old man…um, can you tell me where mistborns come from?"

  both men looked at him, rising their eyebrows with Baffled expression.

  Even Louis couldn't help but to twitch his mouth slightly.

  "Seriously? you really don't know?" the middle-aged man asked" well, before that, let me ask you this. What Exactly is a mistborn to you?"

  The young man hesitated before he Answered.

  "Um… a disease?"

  A beat of silence was surrounding the room.

  Then, the old man let out a hoarse laugh.

  "Boy, do you even study at the academy? How do you not know that?" he chuckled, still amused.

  The young man Blushed in Embarrassment and huffed, crossing his arms.

  "T-That's because history is boring! How could I sit through twenty minutes of hearing about how the Great Nine Families saved the Earth from the Miasma Calamity? i have heard that story over thousands of times now!"

  Wha!?… that's the best part you dumbass!

  Louis's mouth twitched again, Baffled by that young man's take.

  Suddenly, he realized something.

  Wait… What time is it again?

  Louis looked at his watch and realized that the train is arriving in 3 minutes.

  Shit, i almost forgot!

  Panicking, he hurriedly ate his croissant and took quick sips of his coffee, causing some to spill onto his robe. Even the three men behind him took notice.

  As Louis was trying to put his notebook back in his suitcase. At the corner of his eyes, Louis noticed a middle-aged man resting his head on a table that still had half eaten short-cake and empty cup.

  he wore all black clothes, long black coat and combat boots. Under the jacket he had wear a black shirt, together with close-fitting black pants. He also had a sword scabbard worn at his waist.

  Louis looked more more before his eyes widened a bit, he noticed a gas Mask also resting on a table.

  A mistwalker? Louis was surprised to see one up close.

  Louis quickly shook his head and finished packing before standing up and leaving the store.

  He sprinted toward the train station, his heart pounding in his chest. When he finally reached the platform, he rushed to board but was immediately stopped by a ticket inspector.

  "Tickets, young man," the inspector said firmly.

  Still catching his breath from the run, Louis nodded and reached into his pocket, pulling out a sleek black card—his pass for traveling without a ticket.

  "Here," he breathed out, still winded.

  The ticket inspector scanned it, then returned it with a respectful nod.

  "Have a nice trip, Sir Mustang," the inspector said, bowing slightly before stepping aside to let him pass.

  Louis gave a small nod in return and stepped onto the train. After walking down the aisle for a moment, he found an empty seat and sank into it, letting out a relieved sigh.

  He leaned his head against the window, gazing outside for a while. The station remained as lively as ever—passengers bustled about, workers shouted over the noise, and students eagerly boarded, chattering excitedly about returning to the Academy. Unlike them, Louis felt none of their enthusiasm.

  I just hope this year will be a little calmer, he mused, his eyelids growing heavy. With a deep sigh, he allowed himself to relax, letting the exhaustion of the day lull him into sleep.

  Minutes later, the train's wheels groaned into motion. A thick plume of gray smoke rose from the stack as the engines rumbled to life.

  The train had finally set off.

  …Meanwhile, something was appearing outside of the train station, it was gray mist, almost surrounding city.

  most people were confused and little frightened.

  Meanwhile. The middle-aged man who was resting his head on a table suddenly felt a chill running down his spine, he stood up and took his gas mask and immediately went outside.

  After he was outside the train station, his eyes widened for a moment—Gritting his teeth, he pulled out a handheld transceiver and voiced out. His voice full of dread and emergency.

  "I need beck up, sent my team to the train station immediately!

  "The Fog is coming!"