Perfect .
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Chapter 1 – Part 7P
(Academy Reaction & Gossip)
By morning, the quiet corridors of Ashen Hollow were buzzing with whispers. Students moved in hushed clusters, glancing toward the forge with a mix of curiosity and apprehension. The faint crackle and glow from the previous night's experiment had not gone unnoticed.
"Did you hear what happened last night?" a first-year mage whispered, eyes wide. "Someone said sparks were flying from the forge—like the walls themselves were on fire!"
"Impossible," another replied, voice tinged with envy. "It's a first-year. Must be exaggeration."
Yet the murmurs refused to die down. Noble students, always sensitive to any hint of talent outside their own ranks, began to pay attention. Shadows of curiosity and simmering jealousy traced the hallways wherever Jofyn's name was mentioned.
"He's a commoner," one noble muttered, voice low. "Why would the forge even react to him? That shard… that Core… something's different."
The teachers, however, watched silently from the edges. One instructor, the same who had subtly acknowledged Jofyn before, leaned against a stone pillar, fingers tapping lightly against a tablet. His eyes followed the low-ranking student's movements, noting posture, expression, and the faint echo of Core energy still lingering from the previous night.
"Interesting," he murmured softly, mostly to himself. "Not reckless, not careless… deliberate. He feels the pulse, understands it. Rare for a first-year."
Jofyn, oblivious to the growing whispers, walked through the hall carrying his pack. The robe floated beside him, voice muffled and teasing, as if to counterbalance the rising tension.
"Ha! All this fuss over a glowing shard? Let them whisper. It'll amuse me," the robe murmured, flicking a tiny thread of magic into the air for emphasis.
Students glanced at him, puzzled by the soft shimmer and occasional strange sound, but the source remained unseen.
In the cafeteria, whispers intensified. "Do you think he's secretly related to one of the masters?" one asked. "No… that would be obvious."
"Then how? A commoner with that kind of resonance?" another replied. "I don't like it. I don't like it one bit."
Even as envy and curiosity circulated, subtle respect began to grow in small circles. Some students, especially those who had seen him in the forge before, nodded slightly, an unspoken acknowledgment of potential.
Meanwhile, the instructor retreated, thoughtful. He had seen many students with raw talent, but few with such quiet, meticulous control over the Core and external magical artifacts. A whisper of anticipation stirred in his mind. This one… could be extraordinary.
And somewhere, in the unseen corners of Ashen Hollow, the shard from the forge hummed faintly, a soft echo that reached only Jofyn and the robe. A quiet, pulsing reminder that even the world was beginning to take notice.
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