The corridor beneath the academy walls wasn’t listed on any map.Kai followed the silent of enchanted lanterns, each one pulsing low as he passed. His footsteps echoed, the weight of secrecy thick in the cold air. The door behind him had sealed itself shut.No going back.The scent shifted—from damp earth to something older. Burned parchment. Warded metal. Magic with teeth.He paused before a set of double doors. Carved into the arch above were the words: Veritas ex Umbra—Truth from Shadow.A familiar pressure wrapped around his lungs.He’d been here before.No… Rafe had.And whatever had happened last time, it hadn’t ended in peace.The doors opened without a sound.Inside, a circular chamber waited—torchlit and windowless. Seven figures stood cloaked in ash-grey robes, faces hidden behind masks shaped like beasts: lion, owl, serpent, wolf, stag, raven, and fox.Kai stepped forward. The doors slammed shut behind him.“Take the center,” one of them said—wolf mask, low voice, clipped a

The fire began quietly Kai had just returned from the eastern tower, the memory of Aiden’s name still burning behind his eyes like a second sun.Each step through academy corridors felt heavier now—shadows stretched longer……..silences cut deeper He paused at the dormitory stairs feeling something wrong.Then.Boom.The blast ripped through the hallway two floors above.Kai moved before the smoke hit his nostrils. He took stairs three at a time. Grimoire already lit in his grip. Thick smoke pouring from one of the corners room—Lina’s room His veins turned to ice “Kai” Her voice came through coughs. Close He charged into smoke throwing up a quick shield spell—Heat clawed his skin.Magic burst splintered the door. She crouched behind an overturned desk clutching her healer’s bag.Her eyes went wide “It wasn’t me I didn’t” “I know” He swept shadows around them as ceiling beams cracked. A timber smashed where she’d been moments before—They fled through flames down staircases.

The training grounds buzzed louder than normal today. As students tested their strength against one another. Lina stood at the edge of the field, fingers curled tightly around the parchment in her hand.The tournament registration scroll felt heavier than it should have. She read them over again, but her grip didn’t loosen.She could walk away. It would be smarter and safer.But then she saw a first-year kid stumbled back when an older student pushed him after the match ended. His practice sword hit the dirt with a thud while others laughed loud enough to echo across the field.Her chest tightened. She knew exactly what it felt like to be treated like a joke.She took a deep breath, she walked toward the sign-up table before she could change her mind.“Lina.”The voice came low and steady.She turned, and there he was. Kai—he stood by the equipment racks, hands shoved deep in his hoodie pockets like always. Those dark eyes that never missed a thing locked onto hers again.She tried

The letter felt heavier than paper had any right to.Kai’s fingers tightened against the parchment.The word sat alone on the page:“Remember.”No signature. No context. Just the single command.Lina frowned from her seat. “That’s… it?”He didn’t answer. His pulse was pounding in his ears. The room seemed to tilt, the edges of his vision closing in.She stood, stepping closer. “Kai—”The air shattered.There was no other word for it—reality cracked like glass struck from within. The faint torchlight warped, bending toward him, and the world’s colors bled into crimson and gold.The paper in his hands grew warm. Then hot.Lina’s voice was a distant echo. “Kai! Drop it!”But his hands wouldn’t obey. His grip locked around the letter as if some invisible force joined it to him. The warmth turned to a burn, but it wasn’t his flesh that hurt—it was deeper. Like someone had reached into his chest and was dragging something out.The walls of his dormitory faded. The scent of stone and old par

Kai didn’t sleep. Not even for a second.He sat there the whole night, stiff-backed on that damn bench in the courtyard, grimoire heavy across his lap. The air cut cold but he didn’t feel it, not really. What he felt was smoke. The battlefield wouldn’t let go of him—smoldering villages, corpses, voices. Every time he blinked, he kept hearing Rafe’s laugh behind them.By dawn, Kai was so exhausted. But he stood anyway. He had to.The training hall was quiet when he entered. Dust. Steel. The faint smell of torches burning low, still new, still weak in their flames. Shadows stretched long on the floor like old scars.And Lina. Of course she was already there.She had her training gear on, her braid loose against her shoulder. The moment she saw him, she tilted her head, lips pulling in something that wasn’t quite a smile. “You look worse than usual.”“I didn’t know that was possible,” Kai muttered. His voice scraped dry.“Did you even sleep?” she asked, walking toward the center.“No.” H