The third month began with rain.
Nova stood at his window, watching gray sheets fall over the academy grounds. The weather control arrays were offline for maintenance—a rare occurrence that let natural precipitation through. Students huddled under awnings, cursing their wet uniforms, while instructors shouted at them to stop being dramatic.
He didn't mind the rain.
In another life, he had fought through worse. Blizzards on frozen planets. Acid storms on demon worlds. Rain was nothing. Rain was gentle.
His cultivation had reached 1st Order, 4th Rank, 47% toward 5th. The Intermediate Chamber sessions continued—four hours every other day, each one pushing him closer to the next breakthrough. At this rate, he would hit 5th Rank before the month ended.
But something else was growing too.
His bloodline activation had reached 23%. The warmth under his skin was constant now, a low hum of potential waiting to be unleashed. Sometimes, when he flexed his hand, he could see the faintest silver tracing beneath his skin—the mark of the Almond Family Physique, slowly emerging.
Soon, he thought. Soon I'll be strong enough.
Dungeon Ecology — Greenhouse Complex
The class was practical today—cataloging mana-reactive plants for the academy's herbarium. Students spread through the biodomes, collecting samples and recording observations.
Nova worked alone, as usual.
He moved through the rows of exotic flora, noting their properties with clinical efficiency. Firethorn. Frostleaf. Bloodpetal. Each one had uses in alchemy, in cultivation, in combat. His past life's knowledge surfaced occasionally—reminders of formulas he'd seen Nora use, techniques he'd watched her perfect.
In the corner of his vision, movement.
He looked up.
The girl from before—Priscilla—knelt among a patch of Starfall Vines, her hands buried in the soil. The vines were wrapped around her arms, not aggressively but... affectionately. As if they recognized something in her.
Her eyes were closed. Her lips moved silently. Around her, the plants seemed to lean closer, drinking in her presence.
Nova watched for a long moment.
Then he stepped on a twig.
Priscilla's eyes flew open. The vines recoiled. She scrambled backward, flushing crimson when she saw him.
"I—I wasn't—this isn't—"
"Relax." Nova held up a hand. "I'm not an instructor."
She stared at him, recognition dawning. "You're Nova Almond. From Class A. Rank 4."
"You follow the rankings."
"Everyone follows the rankings." She climbed to her feet, brushing dirt from her uniform—a futile effort, given how much was caked into the fabric. "You're kind of famous. Lowest cultivation in Class A, highest combat ranking. People talk about you all the time."
"Let them talk."
An awkward silence.
Priscilla looked at the vines, then back at Nova, then at the vines again. "You won't... tell anyone? About this?"
"About you talking to plants?"
"Kind of." She hugged herself. "Instructor Marlow said my affinity was strong, but he also said I shouldn't draw attention. That people get... weird about plant users who can actually communicate."
Nova considered this. In his past life, plant communicators had been rare—and valuable. Armies had fought over them, their ability to sense environmental changes, to detect ambushes, to grow food in barren soil.
"Your affinity is A-rank," he said. "Communication is part of that. You shouldn't hide it."
"You don't understand." Her voice dropped. "I was in Class D when I arrived. Bottom of the bottom. Students like you—" She stopped, flustered. "I mean, students in the top ranks—they don't notice people like me. But if I start showing off, they'll notice. And not all attention is good attention."
Nova understood that better than she knew.
"Fair enough." He turned to leave. "For what it's worth, your secret's safe with me."
He was halfway to the door when she spoke again.
"Wait."
He paused.
"Why are you here? Class A students usually skip these practicals. Too boring, they say."
Nova glanced back. "Knowledge isn't boring. Knowing what plants can kill you, what plants can heal you, what plants can be used against you—that's survival."
Priscilla's eyes widened slightly. Then, unexpectedly, she smiled.
"You're not what I expected."
"What did you expect?"
"Someone who thought they were too good for greenhouse duty." She moved toward a nearby planter, gesturing at the plants within. "Since you're here... do you want to see something interesting?"
She led him to a secluded corner of the biodome, hidden behind massive ferns and flowering creepers. In a small clearing, barely large enough for two people to stand, a single plant grew.
It was beautiful.
Petal's that shifted through every color of the sunset. Leaves that shimmered with captured light. A stem that pulsed faintly, as if with a heartbeat.
"Moonlace Cascade," Priscilla whispered. "It's supposed to be extinct. The academy's records say the last specimen died fifty years ago." She knelt beside it, her hand hovering inches from the petals. "But it's here. Growing."
"How did you find it?"
"I felt it." She looked up at him. "Plants call to me. Not in words—in feelings. This one was lonely. Scared. It's been hiding here for decades, hoping someone would notice."
Nova studied the flower. Even without plant affinity, he could sense something unusual about it—a concentration of mana that pulsed in rhythm with the visible heartbeat.
"What does it do?"
"Moonlace?" Priscilla's voice held wonder. "In enough quantity, it can temporarily enhance any affinity. Double strength for an hour. There are records of plant users reaching across ranks with Moonlace assistance." She touched the petal gently. "This one is too young to harvest. But in a few months..."
She trailed off, realizing she'd said too much.
Nova looked at her—really looked.
"You're not just a plant talker," he said. "You're a researcher."
Priscilla flushed. "I just read a lot. The academy library has old texts, pre-Awakening stuff about extinct species. I thought—if I could find something valuable, maybe—" She stopped. "It's stupid."
"It's not stupid."
She looked up, surprised.
"It's smart," Nova continued. "Using knowledge to find advantages that others overlook. That's how you rise." He met her eyes. "That's how you survive."
For a long moment, they simply looked at each other.
Then Priscilla smiled—a real smile, not the nervous one from before.
"You're weird, Nova Almond."
"So I've been told."
They talked for another hour.
About plants, mostly—Priscilla's passion was infectious, her knowledge deep. She'd memorized entire volumes of botanical texts, cross-referenced species across continents, developed theories about plant behavior that the academy's instructors hadn't considered.
Nova found himself genuinely interested.
Not in the plants themselves, but in her. In the way her eyes lit up when she explained something. In the way her hands moved when she described growth patterns. In the way she forgot to be afraid when she was talking about things she loved.
When the bell rang for next period, they both startled.
"I should—" Priscilla gestured vaguely toward the exit.
"Yes." Nova nodded. "Classes."
Neither moved.
Then Priscilla laughed—a real laugh, light and surprised. "This is awkward."
"Yes."
"We're both just standing here."
"Yes."
She laughed again, and something in Nova's chest shifted. Something that had been cold for a long, long time.
"I'll see you around?" she asked.
"Probably."
"Good." She gathered her things, then paused at the edge of the clearing. "Nova? Thanks. For listening. For not... you know."
"Being an ass?"
"I was going to say 'being like the others.' But yes, that too."
She disappeared through the ferns.
Nova stood alone in the hidden clearing, the Moonlace Cascade pulsing softly beside him, and felt something he hadn't felt in two lifetimes.
Interest. Genuine, uncalculated interest.
That night, he found himself thinking about her.
Not in the way he thought about opponents—analyzing strengths and weaknesses. Not in the way he thought about threats—calculating risks and responses. Just... thinking. Remembering her smile. Her laugh. The way the plants had leaned toward her like children seeking comfort.
He checked his interface absently.
BLOODLINE ACTIVATION: 24%
CULTIVATION: 1st Order, 4th Rank — 51% toward 5th
MANA RESERVE: 291/291 units
The System had never noted that before.
Nova dismissed the screen and lay back on his bed.
Priscilla, he thought. Class B. Plant affinity.