House Thorne's private lounge was carved into the north tower. Redstone walls. Heated floors. Quiet as a crypt.
Thorne sat at the head of the table, swirling a glass of goldleaf wine, expression blank.
Across from him stood Dain, his second-in-command—a meat-brained B-ranker who thought power made him untouchable.
Behind Dain, three other noble students waited, tense.
The air felt sharp. Like a held breath.
"He didn't just win," Thorne said calmly. "He dominated."
"It was a lucky shot," Dain muttered.
"You don't get lucky five times in one duel."
Thorne set the glass down.
It didn't make a sound. That's how quiet the room was.
"Aeron Valen," he said, drawing out the name. "F-rank. Sealed. Exiled. Worthless. And yet…"
He turned to the others.
"He just took out Ryden Vask in front of a council Overseer and thirty witnesses."
"We could say he cheated," one of the nobles offered.
Thorne gave him a look that could freeze magma.
"We're not stupid, Marce."
Marce shrank into his chair.
"If we cry foul," Thorne continued, "they'll look closer. The last thing we want is anyone scanning Aeron's core."
Thorne rose, walking to the window.
From here, he could see the training field. Empty now. But the memory of Aeron standing there—shirt torn, calm, defiant—burned behind his eyes.
You were supposed to be broken.
You were supposed to disappear.
And now?
Now everyone was talking.
"You all think this is about status," Thorne said. "About family. Bloodlines. Rank."
He turned to face them.
"But this is about control."
His hand clenched behind his back.
"Aeron was supposed to be a warning. A lesson. Now he's a symbol."
"Symbol of what?" Dain asked.
"Rebellion," Thorne spat. "He's showing them that they can defy us and survive."
"We'll take care of him—"
"No." Thorne raised a hand. "Not yet. Let him grow a little. Let him feel strong."
He smiled coldly.
"Then we cut out his heart in front of the entire school."
Meanwhile – Somewhere Near the East Garden
Mira sat beneath a tall arch of silver vines, her eyes locked on the sketchbook in her lap.
She wasn't drawing.
She was thinking.
The duel had reached every corner of the campus by now.
Some were impressed.
Most were confused.
The nobility? Enraged.
But she felt something different.
Pride. And fear.
She remembered Aeron as a boy who laughed too easily.
Who sparred barefoot.
Who once took a punch to the gut just to make her laugh.
Now?
He moved like a ghost.
Fought like a killer.
What happened to you in that black door, Aeron?
She didn't know what terrified her more:
That he was still fighting…
…or that she liked it.
Later That Night – Reject Wing Courtyard
Aeron sat on the old stone fountain, shirt draped over his shoulder, scabbing knuckles resting on his knees.
Cora approached from the east hall, chewing on a green apple.
"They're watching you harder now," she said casually. "Nobles, staff, students. Even the Overseers."
"Good."
"You planning to go full drama king next? Kick down the academy gates, punch Thorne in the teeth, reclaim your title?"
"Eventually."
"Damn. At least let me sell tickets."
She bit the apple again and plopped beside him.
"You really don't care anymore, do you?"
"I care about getting stronger."
"Why?"
Aeron looked at her, eyes cold.
"Because the weak die confused."
Midnight – Unknown Location
Inside the Hall of Soul Echoes—a place most students didn't even know existed—three faculty members stood in silence.
One was Veylos, arms crossed, expression unreadable.
The second, a veiled woman, whispered softly to a glowing crystal.
The third was Archmistress Elira, head of inner faculty.
"He's manifesting abilities with no registry," she said. "No traces. No permission. And no mentor."
"A system user?" the veiled woman asked.
"No interface. No windows. No ping." Elira shook her head. "But he's awakening something. Something… very old."
Veylos finally spoke.
"And powerful."
"Yes," Elira said. "But unstable. Dangerous. Hybrid magic was banned for a reason."
"Should we intervene?"
"Not yet." Elira stared into the crystal. "Let the beast show its fangs. Then we decide whether to tame it…"
Her eyes narrowed.
"…or cage it."
[End of Chapter 7]