The training arena wasn't built for comfort—it was carved into the mountain behind Starcrest Academy's dorm rooms, where the wind howled like wolves and the stone floor drank blood like thirsty roots.
The students stood in formation, grey jackets buttoned tight against the cold wind. Their trousers were tucked into combat boots, and silver clasps held house crests on their shoulders.
Leo's fingers flexed by his sides, his hands covered in black leather fingerless gloves
Beside him all the others and also a new member. Alec Kincaid
*********************************
Earlier that morning, before master Ren arrived at the training arena .
Seth walks in with a wide grin as usual, he walks straight to the group .
" Hello everyone"
" What's with the cherry attitude today?" Leo asked flatly.
" Nothing much, just a feeling that today is going to be fun"
A new presence appears and walks towards them, his tightly restrained aura clearing the other students away.
" Hello everyone " he says coldly while staring daggers at Arthur.
Recognition hits Leo and he murmurses to himself " Alec Kincaid" .
Arthur's and Alec's auras start flaring and a clash is about to happen when the overwhelming aura of master Ren is felt from afar .
" No fighting kincaids" his voice booms over the winds
*********************************
Alec stood slightly behind the others. His hair was darker than Arthur's, cropped shorter, and his cold gaze lingered too long on his brother. But for now, he said nothing.
A deep boom echoed through the arena as a large iron door opened at the far end.
Master Ren entered.
His long coat whipped behind him, black with streaks of silver. A simple cane tapped against the stone, though everyone knew he didn't need it. His silver eyes—swept across the students like a hawk eyeing prey.
"Welcome," he said, voice calm, sharp. "Today, we forget theory. We forget noble bloodlines and prodigy titles. Today, you bleed."
A silence followed. Not one of fear—but anticipation.
Ren gestured, and the ground trembled. Stone pillars erupted around them, forming an uneven battlefield. Some rose high as towers, others jagged like broken blades. Floating platforms hovered above the arena edges, each holding a weapon or tool glimmering with enchantment.
"Teamwork is not optional. Survival is not guaranteed. This is not a test—it's a lesson."
His voice dropped a note deeper.
"Kill or be killed."
A dozen training golems surged from hidden gates. Towering beasts with obsidian armor and red glowing cores. Unlike ordinary constructs, these were enhanced with ancient battle scripts—able to learn, adapt, counter.
The students broke formation.
Leo dashed forward—no weapon, just fists lit with faint traces of purple sparks. His movements were fluid, unassuming… until he twisted low under a golem's strike and sent a punch into its core. The ground cracked. The golem reeled, its center dented.
" Hahaha this is great" Leo shouts and runs forward faster than normal. Seth roars from the side, purple aura trailing his fists. "LEO, you aren't taking the spot light today"
He leaps bringing both arms down in a double hammer blow—dust erupting from the impact.
Kevin's hair sparks with crimson lightning, as he runs past the two, fists crackling as he slammed a golem through a stone wall with brute force.
Behind them, Arthur drew —a calm breath then moved with quiet grace, cutting down two golems in a single motion, his extended fingers glowing with icy mist.
Sandra stood still at first. The golems didn't target her. Her eyes shimmered silver-blue, and with a breath, her illusion magic spread—three mirror images of her stepped forward, each taking a different path. One drew a dagger, the other whispered a spell.
Alex blurred past her, moving with gale-like speed. His large fists hummed in the air as he carved through a golem's joints.
Veronica danced between two beasts, twin blades coated with poison gleaming ominously. She moved like smoke—hard to touch, impossible to catch.
Mathew summoned a giant shadow wolf from the earth, which tackled one golem as dark vines erupted from the floor to bind another.
Summer slightly behind, flicked her fingers—light bending around her, time slowing briefly. Her expression flickered with uncertainty, then clarity. She shattered a golem's head with a focused beam of light.
May impaled two golems in crystal spikes and June detonated them with a snap of blue light.
Lucia was almost invisible, her speed unmatched as she slices golem after golem .
After a few seconds others react unleashing their abilities. All except one
Alec… watched in silence.
He moved only when Arthur looked his way—then shattered a golem with a single blast of dark compressed water.
Slowly teams form . Their teamwork was rough, but effective.
Ren watched with no expression. Then, softly, he whispered a command.
Two elite golems descended from above—red cores pulsing violently.
Leo lunged forward again.
This time, the golem adapted.
It caught his fist.
Everyone froze as Leo's feet left the ground, the beast lifting him into the air.
Seth growled and rushed in, but a second golem blocked him.
The first golem began to crush Leo's arm.
Leo gritted his teeth. Something inside him shifted.
A flicker of space bent around his body, distorting light, pressure, time.
And then—boom.
The golem flew backward, crashing into a pillar.
Leo's eyes glowed faintly.
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"…Interesting."
---
After the battle, the students collapsed in the sand, gasping, bruised, but alive. The golems faded into smoke.
Ren walked among them. "Not bad for your first day. But most of you would've died against real enemies."
He stopped in front of Leo.
"You've hidden your strength well, Leo Chambres . But remember—this world doesn't care what you hide. Only what you become."
Then he walked away.
Leo said nothing. But in his heart, he felt the demon stir again.
And somewhere in the depths of the academy… a new presence arrived.
A teacher. Smiling. Polite.
With shadows behind his eyes.
******************************
The days after the combat class passed in a whirlwind of bruises, sore muscles, and hushed conversations. Word spread quickly—not about Leo's outburst of power, but about the matchless performance of the newly dubbed " Chosen ones"
Their uniformed figures were becoming iconic: grey jackets catching the wind, white buttoned shirts sharp beneath, and a presence that drew stares wherever they walked. Some students whispered the group was being groomed for greatness. Others watched with narrowed eyes.
Their next class took place in the Skyforge Pavilion, a domed structure floating over a cascading waterfall. Inside, open platforms and dueling rings hovered mid-air, tethered by Celestial runes.
This session focused on technique—swordplay, elemental control, reaction time. Students rotated partners, clashing and learning.
Arthur squared off against a golden-haired boy named Lucien Vance, who wielded a whip-sword and a condescending smirk. Their spar was fast, deadly, and filled with hidden tension.
"You Kincaids always act like you're born perfect," Lucien sneered.
Arthur said nothing—just parried, twisted, and sent Lucien's blade spiraling out of his grip. The match ended in five breaths.
Across the ring, Alec watched.
Not just Arthur—but the girl he'd accidentally been paired with for training: June. Her crystalline constructs floated around her like orbiting shards, their movements elegant and precise.
"You're holding back," she told him bluntly.
"I don't need to go all out on someone like you," he replied, frostily.
She smiled. "Oh? I wasn't talking about power."
Alec scowled. June raised her crystal blade—and lunged.
Meanwhile, Leo faced Alex in a friendly spar.
Alex's fists moved like a storm, but Leo's movements were deliberate. Calm. Controlled. They danced around each other, fists clashing, sparks flying.
"You're still hiding something," Alex said between punches.
"Everyone is," Leo replied, smirking faintly.
Alex laughed, even as he was knocked flat onto his back.
A few students watching from the side cheered. Others grumbled.
Among the spectators, a trio of new students exchanged glances.
One of them—a lean girl with green flame tattoos along her arms—clicked her tongue. "Those are the ones everyone's hyping? Boring."
Her companion, a silver-eyed boy with twin daggers, shrugged. "Let them play hero. It's only the beginning."
Only one of them didn't speak. A quiet girl with void-black hair, taking notes in a leather-bound book. Her eyes briefly flicked to Leo.
And narrowed.
---
Later that evening, the thirteen walked back toward the dorm commons under the soft orange glow of sunset. The air smelled of pine and lightning—residual essence from the day's practice.
June walked alongside Alec. "You're strong," she said. "But strength alone won't make you part of this group."
He scoffed. "I'm not trying to be."
"Maybe not," June replied. "But you're already in it. Like it or not."
He looked away. But he didn't walk alone anymore.
Behind them, Leo and Arthur laughed about their spars. Alex teased Summer about nearly tripping over her own light beam. Sandra and Lucia compared summon notes.
Seth walked beside Veronica, whose gaze lingered more and more often on Leo.
Leo trailed just ahead, hands in his pockets.
His space energy was stirring again—gently pulsing under his skin. But so was the other thing… the cold voice that hadn't yet spoken, but watched from within.
---
Far beneath the academy, in chambers no student had seen, Master Ren stood in a circular room surrounded by glowing sigils.
Across from him was a man who looked like a reflection—but older, harsher. Same piercing gaze, but with a scar across one eye and no hint of humor.
"Are they ready?" the man asked.
Ren shook his head. "Not yet. But they will be. Leo's awakening has begun."
"And the others?"
"Drawn together faster than expected. Even the broken ones."
The older man smirked. "Good. When the Chaotic rise again, we'll need more than Celestial blood to stand a chance."