The morning mist hadn't yet cleared when the first-years were marched toward the training grounds. A wide, open field spread before them—scarred earth, wooden dummies, iron obstacles, and glowing rings etched into the stone. It felt more like a battlefield than a school.
Instructor David stood at the front, still sucking on a toothpick, his dao slung lazily over one shoulder. Selene leaned against a nearby post, arms crossed, cigar smoldering.
"All right, my lovely brats," David called, voice booming. "Time to see if you're all bark or if some of you can actually bite."
The students stood in five rows, split by dorm assignment. Cade stood beside Darrow and William, Lysa just behind them. The nervous energy had shifted—now it was dread sharpened into focus.
David pointed to a glowing circle at the center of the field. "This is a mana testing glyph. Step in, channel your essence, and it'll give a reading—color for affinity, brightness for potential. Then sprint the field once and strike the dummy with everything you've got. Some of you will use fists. Others blades. Mages—use your spells. Alchemists? Surprise me."
He gestured toward a dummy wrapped in blacksteel alloy.
"We'll record both your mana and physical scores. This ain't about your class—mage, knight, or alchemist—this is about your raw potential. So don't hold back unless you wanna look pathetic."
David pointed to a glowing circle at the center of the field. "This is a mana testing glyph. Step in, channel your essence, and it'll give a reading—color for affinity, brightness for potential. Then sprint the track and hit the dummy with everything you've got. Some of you will use fists. Others blades. Mages—use your spells. Alchemists? Surprise me."
He gestured toward a dummy standing firm beside the glyph.
It was nothing like the wooden sparring targets they'd practiced on. This one was built of hardened blacksteel alloy—twice-reinforced, char-sealed, reinforced with anchor runes at the base. A nightmare to dent, let alone break.
David grinned at the worried expressions. "Before anyone asks—yes, it's that tough on purpose. I want to see who can crack it. Not who can tickle it."
One by one, students stepped forward. Mages let loose raw bolts of magic; some used elemental strikes or enchanted weapons. One girl summoned vines that wrapped the dummy in a chokehold before burning out. A boy unleashed a wind blade that staggered the dummy but left no mark. A few just ran and punched, only to wince in pain and stumble off.
Only a handful even left scuffs. One managed a shallow dent. That student was immediately swarmed with whispers.
As each impressive display came and went, the pressure built.
When the names Talek and Aela Wen were called, the crowd instinctively parted. The Wenblood siblings wore their family colors—black and blue, with blue trims—but Talek's dark cloak flowed around him like a shadow refusing to settle.
Talek stepped into the glyph.
Color: Blue.
Brightness: Blinding. Arcing. Dangerous.
The moment he stopped moving, the air around him shimmered a crackle surrounding him as if lighting was building up. CRACK!
Lightning exploded without warning, striking the dummy dead center. The steel lit up, heat warping the surface, black scorch blooming across its chest.
Gasps. Even Selene arched an eyebrow.
Next came Aela—calm, poised, whip at her side like a coiled predator.
Color:Blue.
Brightness: Focused. Electric.
Her stride was elegant. You heard and seen the crackle and blue lighting surrounding her whip, With one flick of her wrist, the whip uncoiled, and with a thunderclap, lightning raced down its length and smashed into the dummy. A second black mark joined Talek's.
Two strikes. Neither of them moved more than a step.
The Wenbloods had arrived both leaving a dent.
Then came Darrow and Lysa Ironheart. When they stepped into the glyph, it pulsed orange, glowing with fire.
Darrow charged first, body flaming like a comet. He drove a blazing shoulder into the dummy with a metallic clang. A burn mark, and just barely—a dent.
Lysa followed with a spinning kick wreathed in flame. Her foot cracked against the steel, sparks flying.
Another dent—deeper than most.
"The Ironhearts don't disappoint," someone muttered.
The tension between the Ironhearts and Wenbloods became tangible. Silent, but sharp. Two powerhouses pulling the room into orbit. One loud and explosive. The other cold and precise.
And then there was Cade. Standing between both.
William went earlier—his glyph glowing a violet, clean but faint.
"Alchemist. Mixer?" David guessed.
William nodded nervously. "Y-Yes, sir."
He jogged the track in a hurry, clutching a vial in one hand. At the strike point, he threw it forward.
Pop! The vial exploded midair, splashing the dummy in purple acid. It hissed, steamed… then dribbled off.
No dent. But Selene nodded. "Smart. Creative. Needs refinement."
Then, finally, David called the last name.
"Cade Wen. Let's see what kind of legacy you're dragging into my field."
The courtyard quieted.
Everyone turned. All eyes locked onto him.
The Wenbloods stood silent. The Ironhearts watched with unreadable expressions. Dozens of students had already whispered: Is he one of them? Or neither?
Cade stepped into the glyph.
Color: it flickered blue then just turned White.
Brightness: Moderate. Sharp-edged. Clean flow.
Neutral affinity.
Rare. Directionless to some. Full of potential to others.
Selene tilted her head. "Interesting…"
David scratched his chin. "Blank slate, huh? Could be good. Could be nothin'."
Cade didn't say a word. He stood at the line where the could start running or Launch a attack.
"Say instructor what happens if you leave the biggest mark?".
David raised an eyebrow, "well considering you don't have a affinity well the normal reward is just a couple of extra points to a test of your choosing but how about this if you can leave the biggest mark you can pass your first test how about that!"?
Selene was getting ready to intervene saying something about it being unfair.
"Deal" I said.
I stepped to the line and got in my stand ready to draw my sword I looked at the dummy with a clear image to just cut not just the dummy but whatever's ahead and behind then I breathed.
"Iron breathing technique phase 1: PULSE!!".
From the moment I drew my sword to the moment I put it back I was across the field in the blink of a eye and about 2 seconds later the sound of the impact came later and everyone look and mark of my blade was the largest dent there and everyone was in awe Selene even put down her cigar and David but down his gourd a sideways slash was there.
No one seen what happened but they seen the result of my blade work like I said I kept just enough cards hidden.