The meeting chamber fell into tense silence after Adrian's declaration. Commander Hayes finally scoffed, his tone sharp.
"This is not a place for children. You are a D-rank, boy."
"The Sea Wall holds hundreds of D-ranks, and they are little more than foot soldiers before the tides. Out there, most monsters are C-rank and above. Even B-ranks surge from the ocean depths."
Hayes leaned forward, "Do you think your presence will change anything?"
The words hit Adrian harder than any blow. Reality. Cold and undeniable.
No matter what secrets he held, no matter the Source affinity hidden within him, right now, he was still just a D-rank. His recent growth gave him a chance against a C-rank, but the monsters at the Sea Wall were far beyond.
Potential wasn't enough. Not here. Not now.
In Aranthor, he had already seen it once. Defenders falling, bleeding, dying so others could live. He had watched with his own eyes how men and women twice his age laid down their lives to hold the line.
That day had opened his eyes. That day, he realized his mistake of hiding his power out of selfishness. In that battle, at least, he had the strength to act, and he did.
But here, in the chamber of the Board, watching the Sea Wall's carnage unfold on the recording, helplessness pressed down on him.
Even if he revealed everything, even if he bared his Source, what use would it be against Leviathans and B-ranks?
"What can I do? What can I change right this second?"
And then, his father's voice. A memory carved deep.
"Don't waste your fury on the monsters, Adrian. They are what they are. Beasts. What should anger you is that humanity still bleeds when we should already be strong enough to stop it."
"Every Defender's death is proof of our weakness. Remember that. Don't be angry at the enemy. Be angry at our helplessness, and make sure you rise strong enough that one day, no Defender has to die for you again."
Now, watching the recording of thousands falling, Adrian finally understood, this was what his father meant.
It was a truth every child of humanity was raised on. Bedtime stories were not fairy tales, but lessons of sacrifice. Schools drilled the same creed.
Humanity survived because Defenders bled, but that bleeding could not continue forever. Every child grew up dreaming of becoming a Defender, to one day protect their families and erase that helplessness.
Adrian was no different.
And now, with the recording of thousands of Defenders dying still echoing in the chamber, the truth struck home. His hands clenched, his heart burned cold.
He would not accept helplessness. Not anymore.
The Source stirred. It felt his despair, his fury, his refusal.
The origin of all affinities would not accept its chosen vessel wallowing in weakness. For a moment, the Source answered.
The white-grey mist erupted around Adrian, his pseudo-manifestation surging alive. The chamber darkened as the aura coiled about him, dense and suffocating.
And then, the impossible happened. Every commander present, veterans of countless wars, felt a pressure that made their affinities tremble. Their own affinities quivered as if bowing, uneasy before the boy.
It was not the aura of a D-rank. It was something primal.
Scarlett's water affinity recoiled within her, seeking shelter from the white-grey presence. Her ice-blue eyes widened as water began forming on her chair's armrests without her command.
Hayes stumbled backward, his earth affinity shuddering like bedrock before an earthquake. "What... what is this?"
Even Selena's golden tattoos dimmed, her runic power cowering before Adrian's manifestation. She pressed herself against her chair, breathing shallow.
"Impossible," she whispered.
Kael alone remained steady, though his S-rank presence strained against the foreign pressure. His dark eyes studied Adrian with newfound intensity.
The mist pulsed with each of Adrian's heartbeats. The very air grew thick, suffocating, as if reality itself bent around the boy.
Adrian's voice cut through the oppressive atmosphere, quiet but carrying absolute authority.
"You are right. I don't yet have the strength to face those monsters head-on. But I am not a child to cower behind walls."
Adrian's voice carried through the oppressive atmosphere his manifestation had created. The white-grey mist still clung to his form.
"You called me a Rune Master, then treat me as one. Send me to the Sea Wall as a Rune Master, if nothing else."
His words slammed into the hall like a hammer. For a heartbeat, even the greatest Defenders of humanity were silent.
"Even if all I can do is inscribe a single scroll that saves one Defender from death, I will go. Even if all I can do is give one Defender another minute to fight, then that is where I belong. On the line, not behind it."
The mist subsided as he forced it back down, but the weight of what they felt lingered. Even hardened commanders glanced at one another, unsettled.
That pressure, that declaration, it wasn't something a mere D-rank could create. Hayes wiped sweat from his brow, his earth affinity still trembling within him.
Scarlett murmured, her voice barely audible, "That pressure, I've never felt anything like it. What exactly was that?"
Adrian was not in the mood to explain. His jaw set with determination.
"It's my affinity. My manifestation. Nothing more."
For a moment, no one spoke. The silence stretched taut as violin strings.
Then Kael leaned back in his chair, a faint smile tugging his lips. His dark eyes held approval.
"Manifestations take many forms. Pseudo or not, this one bears weight. Accept it for what it is, proof of potential."
Selena's golden tattoos flickered weakly, still recovering from the encounter. She watched Adrian with wariness replacing her earlier mockery.
"Very well, Adrian Blackwood. You will not be sent as a soldier." Kael's voice carried final authority.
"But as a Rune Master in support of the Sea Wall's Rune Division. You will observe. You will inscribe. You will save who you can."
Adrian's shoulders straightened.
"That much, you've earned the right to attempt."
Adrian bowed his head slightly, respect evident in the gesture. "That is all I ask."
Kael's gaze sharpened, cutting through any remaining doubt. "Liora Kane will accompany you. As Selena's disciple and a B-rank Defender, she will ensure your survival."
The golden-robed woman stepped forward from the shadows near Selena's chair. Her expression remained carefully neutral.
"You will support, not lead. Understood?"
"Yes." Adrian's voice was steady, unwavering.
The decision was made. Even those who doubted him no longer spoke.
Hayes slumped in his chair, his earlier protests forgotten. Scarlett nodded slowly, ice-blue eyes still studying Adrian with fascination.
The recording above the table continued its grim display of the Sea Wall's devastation. Thousands of casualties. Monsters beyond counting.
The Sea Wall awaited.
And now, Adrian was heading there.