He flipped it open. Scanned the contents briefly. Then looked up at Flora."Flora. Step forward, please."Flora blinked, surprised, but pushed off from the wall and moved to stand in front of the desk.Kael pulled a single sheet of paper from the folder and held it out to her."This is your squad's assignment schedule for the next five days."Flora took the paper carefully, holding it with both hands. Her eyes moved across it, reading quickly."Mining detail." Kael continued, his voice taking on that particular tone of someone delivering information they'd delivered a hundred times before. "Hard labor. The kind that builds character, supposedly."Mira made a noise in the back of her throat that sounded suspiciously like a whimper."You'll be reporting to Shaft Seven in the western mines." Kael went on. "Do you know where that is?"Flora shook her head."It's about an hour's walk from the academy. Down the main road, past the market district, then west into the mining district. Yo

The dorm room was dark except for the thin strip of moonlight coming through the window above the desk.Asta lay on the top bunk, staring at the ceiling. His ribs still ached a dull, constant throb that got worse every time he shifted positions. But he'd learned to breathe around it. Shallow breaths. Careful movements.Below him, he could hear Jabber settling into the lower bunk. The old mattress creaked as his friend rolled onto his side, then onto his back, then onto his side again. Restless.Neither of them had spoken since they'd gotten back to the room. They'd just gone through the motions,changing out of their clinic clothes into something more comfortable, moving around each other in the small space with the practiced ease of people who'd been roommates long enough to have a rhythm.But now, lying in the dark, the silence felt heavy. Full."She's pretty incredible, you know."Jabber's voice came from below. Quiet. Almost hesitant.Asta turned his head slightly, looking down ove

"Your father?"Asta's voice came out quiet. Careful. Like he was stepping on ice that might crack at any second.Below him, Jabber didn't answer right away. The silence stretched out, broken only by the distant sounds of the academy settling for the night,footsteps in other corridors, doors closing, the creak of old wood."Yeah." The word finally came, rough and heavy. "My father."Asta heard the rustle of fabric as Jabber shifted on the lower bunk. When he spoke again, his voice was different. Harder. Like he was bracing himself against something."Mum told me everything. About what happened after I left for the academy."He paused, and Asta could hear him swallow."My father... he's remarried. Got himself a second wife about four months after Mum left.""Why would he…" Asta started, but Jabber cut him off."Because I was a disappointment."The words came out flat. Dead. Like Jabber had said them so many times in his own head that they'd lost all their sharp edges."To him. To th

Asta lay frozen on the top bunk, his heart hammering. For a second his brain was still stuck in sleep mode, trying to process why someone was banging on their door in the middle of the night.Then Roderick's voice came again, sharper this time."I know you're in there! Get OUT here! NOW!"That snapped Asta into motion.He swung his legs over the edge of the bunk, moving too fast, forgetting about his ribs. The moment his body twisted, pain exploded through his chest,sharp and immediate and so intense that white spots danced across his vision."Shit…" The curse hissed through his teeth.He dropped down anyway, landing on the floor with more force than he'd intended. His knees buckled slightly on impact, and he had to grab the edge of Jabber's bunk to steady himself.His ribs were screaming. Every breath felt like someone was driving knives between his bones.But Roderick was still outside the door, and ignoring a high-ranking official was a good way to make your life very difficult ve

The words came out of Jabber's mouth before anyone could stop him."Let's fight."Three syllables. Simple. Direct. Absolutely reckless.Asta's stomach dropped."Jabber…" He started, but his friend wasn't done."You and me. Right here, right now." Jabber took a step forward, and the empty exhaustion that had been weighing him down just minutes ago was gone,burned away by something hotter and more dangerous. "And when I win, me and my squad don't do this mining punishment."Oh no.Oh no no no no…Roderick's expression shifted. The mocking smile faded into something more calculating. More interesting.He studied Jabber for a long moment, his head tilted slightly to one side like he was examining something curious under a microscope.Then his lips curved up again,not a smile this time, but something sharper. Hungrier."Okay." He said slowly.The word seemed to echo in the tunnel."But…" Roderick held up one finger, his eyes glinting in the lamplight. "If I win, YOU will be the only