"Some move unseen. Some strike unchecked. And the rest… can only watch."
———
The night after the announcement stretched endlessly. Even after the lights shut down at ten, sleep refused to come.
The academy was too quiet.
Not peaceful. Not comforting. The silence felt unnatural, as if the entire building were holding its breath.
I lay awake in the darkness, staring at the faint outline of the ceiling above me. My mind kept returning to the same words from the announcement.
'Security irregularity detected.'
'You are permitted to eliminate threats.'
'But do not be caught.'
The academy had spoken those words so calmly, as if they were nothing more than routine instructions.
Somewhere inside these walls, something had gone wrong.
Or someone had.
I turned slightly on the bed and listened. The Gold Dormitory should have been silent. Only three scholars lived here for now. Seraphine. Evangeline. And me. Six rooms existed across the upper floors, but half of them remained empty. The remaining scholars had not yet arrived for enrollment. Their rooms waited in darkness, untouched. Below us, the first floor held the living room and the small library. During the day the place felt warm enough.
At night, however, the building felt hollow.
Every corridor dark. Every door closed. Every shadow unmoving.
And then the scream came. It cut through the night like glass shattering.
A girl's voice.
High. Panicked. Raw with terror.
I bolted upright, my heart slamming violently against my ribs.
For a split second the academy came alive.
Footsteps.
Running.
Fast. Uncontrolled.
The sound echoed faintly across the courtyard outside.
Then came another noise.
Knocking.
Loud. Rapid. Desperate.
Someone was pounding against a door...
"Please!"
The cry carried through the night air, shaking with fear.
My body moved before my mind caught up. I rushed toward the sliding balcony window beside my bed. My room sat on the third floor, overlooking part of the academy courtyard.
Carefully, I pushed the glass open just enough to look outside. Cold night air rushed in. The courtyard below was swallowed in darkness. Only a few distant lamps lit the stone paths, leaving long shadows stretching between the buildings.
For a moment, nothing moved.
Then I saw it.
A figure.
A dark silhouette sprinting across the courtyard.
Too fast to recognize.
Too desperate to be anything but fear.
Another series of frantic knocks echoed somewhere below.
Knock!
Knock!
Knock!
"Open the door!"
The girl's voice cracked as she shouted.
There was something terrifying about it.
Not anger.
Not frustration.
Panic.
The kind that comes when someone believes they are about to die. My fingers tightened against the window frame as I leaned forward, trying to see more. The lamps flickered faintly against the stone path.
The running figure suddenly disappeared into shadow.
Then a heavy sound broke the silence.
A dull thud.
The knocking stopped.
The screaming stopped.
The running stopped.
Just like that.
Silence swallowed everything again.
I waited.
One second.
Five.
Ten.
Nothing moved.
No guards appeared.
No alarms sounded.
No lights turned on.
The academy remained perfectly still.
As if the scream had never happened.
Slowly, I closed the window.
The soft click of the glass sliding shut echoed loudly in the quiet room.
My heart still pounded in my chest.
Someone had been running for their life.
Someone had been begging for a door to open.
And yet the academy had done nothing.
I stood there for a long time, staring at the dark balcony glass.
Then a single thought settled heavily in my mind.
'If the academy truly watched everything, then someone had seen what happened. Which meant the silence was not ignorance. It was permission.'
When morning finally arrived, pale gray light filtering through the tall window, the question that haunted me had only grown heavier.
What had chased that girl through the courtyard last night?
And more importantly...
did she survive it?
Morning arrived slowly.
Cold gray light slipped through the tall window beside the balcony, stretching across the floor in pale lines.
I had barely slept.
Every time I closed my eyes, the scream returned.
The running.
The knocking.
The sudden silence.
Eventually the quiet inside the room became unbearable.
I stood and opened the door.
The hallway on the third floor was empty. No movement from Seraphine's room. No sound from Evangeline's.
The dormitory still slept.
I walked quietly down the stairs.
The first floor looked exactly the same as the night before. The living room sat untouched, the long sofa neatly arranged, the small library shelves standing in quiet rows.
Nothing seemed out of place.
For a moment I wondered if the scream had come from somewhere farther away.
Maybe the courtyard between dormitories.
Maybe another building.
But the curiosity gnawed at me.
So I walked toward the main door and stepped outside.
The air was cool, carrying the faint scent of damp earth from the garden surrounding the Gold Dormitory.
A small stone path curved through the grass toward the dormitory's outer gate.
Each dormitory had one. A small iron gate that separated the garden from the academy grounds.
At night, it was supposed to remain closed.
My eyes drifted toward it.
And then I stopped walking.
The gate was slightly open.
Not wide.
Just enough for someone to slip through.
A faint chill ran through me.
Slowly, I approached.
The metal frame creaked softly as the wind nudged it.
When I reached the gate, I noticed something strange.
The ground beneath it was disturbed.
The soil along the stone path was dark and uneven, as if someone had stumbled there during the night.
I crouched slightly.
Footprints.
Messy. Overlapping. Rushed.
Someone had definitely been here.
My gaze lifted to the iron bars of the gate.
And that was when I saw them.
Thin scratches near the latch.
Several of them.
Uneven.
Desperate.
Like someone had been trying to force the gate open with shaking hands.
A faint memory echoed in my mind.
The knocking.
The desperate voice.
;Open the door.'
A sudden voice behind me broke the silence.
"You're up early." I turned quickly.
Seraphine stood a few steps away, arms loosely crossed, watching me with sleepy curiosity. Then her gaze shifted to the gate. Her expression changed. Not fear. But recognition.
"Oh," she said quietly. "You noticed." I straightened slowly.
"Seraphine," I asked. "Did someone try to get into the dorm last night?" For a moment she didn't answer. Instead, she looked toward the academy grounds beyond the gate. Then she sighed softly.
"Kyrren," she said. "You didn't open the gate… did you?" Seraphine's question hung in the morning air.
"You didn't open the gate… did you?"
I shook my head slowly.
"No."
For a moment she just stared at me. Then a quiet breath escaped her, almost like relief.
"Good," she murmured.
"Why?" I asked. "What would have happened if I did?"
Seraphine glanced again at the iron gate, her playful attitude from the night before nowhere to be seen. Before she could answer, another voice spoke from behind us.
"You would have broken curfew protocol."
Evangeline.
I turned. She stood near the dormitory entrance, already dressed, her posture straight and composed as always. It was hard to tell how long she had been there. Her eyes moved from me to the gate. Then to the disturbed soil beneath it. She had seen everything.
Seraphine rubbed the back of her neck. "You woke up early."
"I heard voices," Evangeline replied calmly. Her gaze returned to me.
"You heard the scream last night."
'It wasn't a question.'
I nodded. "There was someone running," I said. "She was knocking on something. Begging for someone to open a door."
Evangeline studied my face carefully.
"And you did not open the window fully. You did not call out. You did not come downstairs."
"No."
"Good," she said. Her answer was so simple that it sent a chill through me.
I looked back at the gate.
"Someone was trying to get in here," I said quietly. "You can see the scratches."
Seraphine sighed. "Yeah… I see them."
My eyes shifted between the two of them.
"So, what happened?" I asked.
Neither of them answered immediately. Evangeline walked toward the gate, crouching slightly to examine the disturbed ground. Her fingers brushed the edge of one footprint before she stood again.
"She was running," she said.
Seraphine frowned. "You can tell that from this?"
"Yes."
Evangeline pointed to the uneven marks along the soil.
"Unbalanced steps. No pause. Whoever came here was moving quickly."
She looked toward the academy grounds beyond the gate.
"Most likely fleeing."
A quiet tension settled between us.
"Fleeing from what?" I asked.
Evangeline's eyes shifted toward me again.
"From someone."
The answer felt heavier than it should have. Seraphine crossed her arms.
"Look, Kyrren… there's something you should probably understand about this place." Her tone was softer now. "After curfew, the academy treats anyone moving around the grounds as a potential threat."
I frowned. "That sounds extreme."
Evangeline answered calmly. "It is intentional."
"But she was asking for help," I said. "She was knocking on a door."
Seraphine looked uncomfortable.
"Yes. And if someone inside had opened that door or this gate…"
She hesitated. Evangeline finished the sentence.
"They would have been responsible for whatever followed."
I stared at her.
"What does that mean?"
Evangeline's voice remained perfectly steady.
"It means the academy assumes that anyone outside after curfew has already broken the rules."
Her eyes flicked toward the scratches on the gate.
"If someone was chasing her, allowing her inside would mean bringing that danger with her."
The meaning settled slowly in my mind.
"So, the rule is… what?"
Seraphine gave a small, uneasy smile.
"The safest decision is to pretend you heard nothing."
Silence lingered around us. My gaze returned to the half-open gate. The scratches. The disturbed soil. The path leading back into the academy grounds.
"And if someone really was chasing her?" I asked.
Evangeline looked out across the quiet courtyard. Her expression didn't change.
"Then the academy's announcement last night already gave them permission."
A cold realization crept into my thoughts.
.
.
'You are permitted to eliminate threats.
But do not be caught'.
'
The words from the announcement echoed again in my mind.
I swallowed slowly. "So the girl…"
Seraphine looked away. Evangeline's voice was calm as ever.
"We may find out soon enough."
Just then, a distant chime echoed across the academy grounds. All three of us looked up. A mechanical voice followed.
"Attention, scholars."
The announcement system had activated again. Evangeline's eyes narrowed slightly.
Seraphine muttered under her breath. "Well… that can't be good."
The voice continued.
"All first-year scholars are ordered to report to the central training courtyard immediately."
A brief pause followed. Then the final words echoed across the academy.
"Attendance is mandatory."
The announcement faded into silence.
"Attendance is mandatory."
For a moment, none of us moved. The air around the Gold Dormitory felt unusually heavy, as if the academy itself were watching our reaction.
Evangeline stepped forward first. "We should go."
Seraphine pushed the iron gate open the rest of the way. It creaked softly. No one mentioned the scratches on the latch. No one mentioned the footprints. But the image refused to leave my mind.
Someone had run here last night. Someone had clawed at that gate in desperation.And now the academy wanted every scholar in the courtyard.
Why?
As we walked along the stone paths, students began appearing from the surrounding dormitories. Some were older, moving with quiet confidence; the newer scholars followed behind, cautious and hesitant. We are
Low voices drifted through the cool morning air.
"…they said there was screaming…""
After curfew?"
"Yeah. Not good."
A tall student ahead muttered to his friend." If it happened after curfew, the academy won't get involved."
His friend frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You'll understand eventually,"the older student said, shrugging.
The conversation ended abruptly as the central training courtyard came into view.
The arena was enormous, a wide circle surrounded by stone terraces and observation platforms. Students gathered in uneven clusters across the courtyard, but the atmosphere felt wrong.
Low voices drifted through the cool morning air.
"…did you hear? Today's the day the registry opens…"
"Yeah… the day you can formally challenge someone to rise in rank.""
No way… so that's why everyone's here?"
A few students nodded, whispering excitedly to one another, as if sharing secrets.
I caught snippets, piecing it together. Sunday. Challenges. Rising in rank.It should have been loud. Excited. Competitive. But the tension hanging over the courtyard felt wrong like a storm waiting to break.
We arrived at the large, spacious gymnasium. The hall stretched high above us, the vaulted ceiling disappearing into shadows, chandeliers casting dramatic pools of light across the polished marble floor. Students had gathered in clusters around the central sparring zone, whispering to one another.
"I heard the Director called everyone here for something… strange," one murmured."Do you think it has to do with the challenges?" another replied, leaning closer, curiosity glinting in her eyes.
I caught fragments of conversations, piecing them together. The polished marble floor bore the academy's sigil at its center—a crossed sword and laurel—surrounded by dark obsidian tiles marking the sparring ring. Benches lined the right side, velvet-cushioned, filled with students waiting their turn or silently observing. Above, a balcony with tinted glass and heavy drapes loomed like a silent sentinel, where elite instructors or officials watched without being seen.
Along the left wall, dark oak panels held racks of rare swords, rapiers, and other blades. Training dummies, made of metal and leather, moved and resisted strikes as if alive, practicing endlessly in the sparring area. Arched mirrors lined the right wall, reflecting the motion of the gathered students and the ring below, while crystal decanters glimmered on side tables, water shimmering in the candlelight.
Everything about the hall was imposing, theatrical, and precise. Yet beneath the grandeur, a tension lingered, threaded through the students' whispered questions. Why were we all called here? What had happened in the dead of night? And as I stepped forward, a chill ran down my spine—I could feel the weight of eyes, and something about the day felt… off.
I noticed Seraphine glanced around, like it is her first time to be here.
"Something's off," she murmured.
I didn't disagree. Everyone felt it.
Then the crowd shifted. Students near the front straightened instinctively.Conversations stopped mid-sentence.
A ripple of silence spread outward like water.
Director Valerius Danton stepped onto the elevated platform overlooking the courtyard.Immaculate uniform. Rigid posture. Every movement precise.
The effect was immediate. Whispers ceased. Heads lowered. Even older scholars stopped talking.
A boy near the front whispered nervously to his neighbor." Is he always like this?"
The older student beside him didn't look up." Don't talk while he's watching," he murmured. "He notices everything."
Director Danton stood motionless for a few seconds, gaze sweeping the students like a ruler inspecting his kingdom.
Finally, he spoke.
"A security irregularity occurred within academy grounds last night." A faint ripple moved through the students. "The matter has been addressed."
I waited for a minute or two, but realizing that no words were coming from his mouthI remained silent. No explanation. No details. Just a statement.
A boy to my left muttered, "That's it?"
I looked at him unintentionally, and suddenly he looked at me. Our eyes met, and I felt something different from him. I immediately divert my gaze.
An older student gave a humorless chuckle." What did you expect?"
"But someone—"
"If the director says it's handled," the older student interrupted quietly, "then it's handled."
Director Danton's voice carried again.
"Let this serve as a reminder. Rules exist for a reason. Those who follow them will thrive. Those who do not…" He let the sentence hang. Silence deepened. No one needed him to finish.
"Today is Sunday." A faint murmur passed through the older students. "The Initiation Duels for all first-year scholars begin now." My pulse quickened. This was it—the moment to prove survival before rank could even be considered.
A mechanical display flickered to life above the courtyard wall. Names, dormitories, and pairing assignments illuminated with cold precision. The new students would step into the sparring ring first, their place in the academy's pyramid decided in brutal seconds. Only after the trials could the challenge registry open for those wishing to climb higher.
Director Dalton clasped his hands behind his back. "Scholars who wish to improve their standing may submit a formal challenge after the Initiation Duels. Victory grants advancement. Defeat carries consequences. Remember this: rank is not given. It is taken." With that, he stepped aside.
The courtyard slowly returned to life. Students whispered quietly, some moving toward the new dueling ring, others studying the ranks and waiting their turn. Seraphine exhaled.
"Well," she muttered, "that was cheerful."
But the crowd shifted again. Students stepped aside without being told. A narrow path opened through the center.
I frowned. "What's going on?"
Seraphine followed my gaze, straightened, and whispered, "Oh. That's interesting."
Two figures were approaching from opposite sides. Instantly, conversations stopped. Students moved instinctively aside—even older scholars looked up.
A girl nearby whispered, "Are those…?"
Her friend nodded. "Yeah. Already?"
The first figure walked with relaxed confidence, faint smirk on his face, as if the attention were expected. Arrogant. Unbothered.
The second figure approached calmly, silent, expression neutral—almost distant. But his presence felt far more dangerous.
Seraphine sighed. "Oh great. Those two again."
I glanced between them. "You know them?"
Seraphine laughed quietly. "Everyone knows them."
Evangeline added, calm as ever, "Members of the Ten."
My eyes narrowed. "The Ten?"
"The top of the pyramid," she explained. "The highest-ranked scholars in the academy."
The arrogant student stopped near the arena edge, stretching lazily. "Looks like the registry opened early," he said casually.
Across the courtyard, the calm student simply watched him. No smile. No reaction.
Seraphine shook her head. "They've been rivals for years."
Evangeline nodded. "One is Rank Eight." She gestured toward the arrogant one. "The other…" her gaze shifted toward the calm student. "…is Rank Five."
The calm student's eyes swept across the courtyard. When they passed over our direction, a strange chill ran through me. He didn't react. He didn't smile. He simply observed.
And for the first time since arriving at the academy, a disturbing thought settled in my mind:
If things could change so quickly… if someone could move through this place unchecked… could I survive here? What secrets were hidden in these walls, in the rules no one dared to break? What power did the Top Ten truly hold, behind their calm expressions and untouchable presence? And what would it feel like to be part of the Top Ten? The question wouldn't leave me. My lips curved into a quiet, knowing grin, hiding thoughts I couldn't share with anyone.