The office door remained shut. Thorne, Mira, and the apprentice sat in a tense, suffocating silence. Thorne leaned against the stone wall. His arms were crossed. His eyes never left the heavy oak door. The apprentice boy rubbed his shoulder where the rock had struck him. He paced back and forth. He looked as though he wanted to bolt into the street and never look back.
"She is going to get us killed," the boy whispered. His voice cracked. "Do you have any idea who that boy is? The stories they tell in the markets. He is a curse. A walking Kalamity."
"He is a child," Thorne said. His voice was low and dangerous. "And if you value your tongue, you'll stop speaking of him as if he were a monster. You work for a Speedhardt. Surely you've learned that the world's stories are rarely the truth."
The boy stopped pacing. He looked at Thorne with wide, fearful eyes.
"A Speedhardt? Is that what she is? She never told me. She just told me she was a doctor of the old ways. But if she is one of them, then the King will find us. King Hallow doesn't leave loose ends."
Mira stepped forward. Her hand rested on the hilt of her blade. "The King has enough problems in the capital. He isn't looking for a doctor in the slums of a border town. Now be quiet and keep watch."
Inside the office, the air was thick with dried herbs. Tension lingered from Elowen's interrogation. Leiya stood by the desk. Her mind raced. Elowen seemed like a fractured mirror of Kalamity. She possessed the same sharp intellect, but it was twisted by years of isolation and grief.
"Zen hearts," Leiya whispered. The words felt heavy on her tongue. "You said the twins have two. Does Kota have two as well? Is that why he's overflowing?"
Elowen turned from her shelves. She held a small vial filled with shimmering silver liquid. Her expression was strange. Hollow.
"No. Kota was born with one heart. Like my apprentice. Like you and those fools outside. That's what makes his condition so terrifying. A single heart is not meant to hold the sheer volume of Yen coursing through him. It's like trying to contain a Great Lake inside a porcelain teacup. The pressure should've shattered his ribs and turned his blood to ice years ago."
She looked toward the flickering torchlight. Her shadow danced against the stone.
"The twins. Hykee and Lokee. They were the perfect vessels. Two hearts to pump the energy. Two cores to balance the light and the dark. They were meant to be the pinnacle of the bloodline. But they're empty. I felt it when they were infants. They had the capacity, but no soul to fill it. And Kota? It's as if he has the soul of a titan trapped in the body of a boy. If those twins are the balance, he is the polar opposite."
Elowen paused. Her eyes narrowed. "Honestly, I'm surprised he hasn't fully inverted yet."
"Inverted?" Leiya asked.
Elowen let out a low, guttural growl. "Do you even know what the Existence Ranks are?"
Leiya shook her head. "Miss Leona never taught me that."
Elowen slammed a jar of dried lavender onto the table. The sound echoed sharply.
"Leona was always too fond of secrets and not fond enough of survival. Typical."
She began to pace. Her hands moved as if drawing the information in the air.
"Listen carefully, girl. I helped the founding fathers construct the foundation of the Zen heart system. I know the blueprints of the soul better than anyone drawing breath. Existence is not just about breathing. It's about how much space your soul occupies in the laws of this world. We categorize it into grades."
She held up one finger.
"First is Fragile. That's the baseline for ninety nine percent of the population. They have no mastery over the Triad. They are bound by natural laws. They exist only because the stronger grades allow it."
Elowen stopped. She looked at Leiya. "You're following me, right?"
Leiya nodded quickly. Elowen held up a second finger.
"Then you have the Irregular. These are the ones who've broken the ceiling. There are two paths here. The Natural Path, where you cultivate the Zen engine and tap into bloodline or elemental Yan. Then there is the Forbidden Path. Forcing an Inversion. Manifesting massive Yen outputs through forbidden eyes or acts. This allows even those without high Zen to glitch reality. They can defy minor laws, like brief teleportation. Most Speedhardt siblings reached this as toddlers. They aren't bound by common rules."
Leiya listened. Her heart hammered against her ribs.
"Most of his siblings did this as toddlers?" she breathed.
"Shhh. Pay attention. Between those who wander and those who become monsters, there are the Deviants. The Deviant is a transitional rank for those who refuse to choose a single path. They wield both Yan and Yen. Because they pull from opposing sources, their Zen engine is under constant internal friction. Many Deviants die young or explode into Blight stains. They are unpredictable. Once a Deviant stabilizes that dual power and develops multiple hearts, they ascend. They become a Dual Anomaly."
She held up a third finger.
"The third. Anomalies."
"The Anomaly is the turning point. An Irregular becomes an Anomaly through stabilized Full Inversion. They possess multiple hearts to sustain the massive Zen required to fold space. They don't just use power. They overwrite the environment. They're walking Blights. The twins and the two oldest may sit in this rank. I have my suspicions."
Leiya swallowed hard. Her mind tried to place Kota within this hierarchy. "Where does Kota rank right now? As of today?"
"Right now? He's a dying Irregular. He's playing with the power of an Anomaly, but he lacks the engine to drive it. He's a candle trying to burn with the heat of a star."
Elowen stopped pacing. She looked Leiya dead in the eye. A faint, complex triple thump vibrated from her chest. She didn't acknowledge it."
And then there is Reality. The Peak. The highest grade achievable by mortals. For them, existence itself is a fundamental law. They define reality rather than inhabiting it. Their Zen is so dense that their physical form is a manifestation of the Yen Blight. It's the final barrier before touching the Divine. Those who reach the peak through the Yan path are known as Elemental Monarchs. Those who reach it through the Yen path are known as Yen Tyrants."
Elowen looked back at the heavy door.
"Kota is an Irregular on the verge of becoming an Anomaly, but he's doing it with only one heart. I carry three hearts in this chest, girl. I helped build this system so we wouldn't have to witness a catastrophe like this. If Kota inverts fully without the Zen to stabilize it, he won't just die. He'll become a stain on the world that never cleanses."
She handed the silver vial to Leiya. Her hand was finally steady."
I can feel the massive Yen trying to break out. I don't know what he's doing to suppress it, but it's worked so far. It won't last. Give him this. It should keep his Yen stable for a few days. It'll numb the pathways enough for him to sleep without the tremors."
Elowen stepped closer. Her intense gaze softened for the briefest moment.
"I know Kota didn't kill my brother or his family. All of his siblings are alive. They're the ones hunting him right now. I only asked that question to see what you'd say. I like that you'd protect Kota no matter what. Do not ever leave his side. Go to him now and tell my apprentice to come in here. Do not tell those two anything we spoke about. Lie if you must. Tell Kota he'll be fine for a few days if he takes this medication."
Leiya nodded. Her throat was tight. She clutched the cool glass. She turned and walked toward the door. Behind her, Elowen stood still. Three hearts beat in a complex, terrifying rhythm. Leiya could feel it vibrating through the floorboards.