Coker didn't even blink. Even when the three strongest students in the academy stood in front of him with their powerful beasts summoned already, he just stood there, hands in pocket. His face looked calm… but his shadow? It moved, like it was alive.
The alleyway where they blocked him was narrow and dark, surrounded by tall walls where no teacher could see nothing. The heat in the air came from the fire lion, its whole body glowing like molten metal. Smoke came from its nose with every breath. Above, a lightning hawk circled, its feathers crackling like small storms. The last boy, the quiet one, raised his fists—around him floated heavy stone hands, floating and ready to crush. A-Rank beasts, all of them. The mana around them buzzed thick, trained, sharp. Coker? He got nothin visible.
"Last warning, trash," said the fire lion boy, stepping closer. "You act big yesterday, but now we make sure you learn where your place is."
Coker looked at him and tilted his head, slow. "You sure?" he said, like he was just askin a simple thing.
And then they attacked.
All three came at once. The fire lion roared and charged straight in. The hawk screamed from above and shot down like a thunder arrow. The stone fists flew through the air with speed that break bones. Three different attacks. No way to dodge all. No time to think. It shoulda ended him right there.
But… it didn't.
The moment the fire touched him—it vanished. Like it was swallowed by the night itself. The stones? They stopped mid-air, trembled, then cracked into dust. The hawk tried to turn, tried to escape, but something grabbed its wing.
It was his shadow.
His shadow had grown massive. Not normal. It spread on the ground like black water, then climbed up the walls, then reached into the sky. It swallowed fire. It crushed stone. It caught lightning.
Then… it grabbed the boys.
The shadows took shape. Arms. Claws. Fingers made of pure darkness. It grabbed their legs and held their arms in the air like they were puppets. Their beasts started vanishing. Not by command. They just disappeared—unsummoned like they was scared.
Coker walked forward, calm. The air was still. Nobody made a sound. Even the fire lion, the hawk, the floating fists—gone.
"You all call me monster," Coker said quietly. "But monsters… they don't fear nothin. You all scared right now, ain't you?"
The boy with the lion dropped to his knees first. The others followed. Their heads down, hands shaking.
Coker raised one hand. The shadows lifted them up slowly, then threw them back onto the ground—not hard enough to kill, just enough to make em remember.
"Tell your friends," he said, turning. "Tell your teachers. Tell the ones who think I should get expelled or locked away. I didn't start this. But if they wanna try me again…"
He stopped walking. Didn't look back.
"…then they better bring a coffin."
The shadow slid back to his feet, silent like it never moved at all. The alley was quiet again. But the boys? They didn't speak a word. Couldn't.
Next day, Coker walked into class. Not one soul looked him in the eye. People moved away like he carried a curse. The three boys from last night? Nowhere to be seen. Maybe they was still sleepin from fear.
He sat down. Same seat as always. But this time, nobody sat near. Even the teacher paused a little when callin names.
Coker didn't mind the silence. He'd lived with it for years. But now… it felt different.
Power. He finally had power.
But it felt cold.
At night, he didn't sleep normal no more. His room stayed dark, even with candles. The shadows moved when he wasn't lookin. And deep down, inside his chest or soul or wherever this power came from… something was breathin. Not him. Not human. Just… breathin slow. Waitin.
The shadow wasn't just a weapon.
It was alive.
And it was part of him now.