Morning arrived quietly.Sunlight filtered through the windows of Astral Vanguard's dormitory halls, chasing away the darkness that had settled over the guild during the night.Andrew opened his eyes before dawn.For several moments he remained on his bed, staring at the ceiling.The conversation with Arin from the previous night lingered in his thoughts.He hoped the other boy had listened.Not because Andrew enjoyed giving advice.Far from it.Most people ignored advice anyway.Still, Arin was one of them now.One of the six.If Astral Vanguard wanted to continue advancing through the Guild Competition, every member mattered.A chain was only as strong as its weakest link.And right now, Arin was trying far too hard to become that weak link.Andrew exhaled and pushed himself upright.After dressing, he stepped into the corridor.The first thing he heard was snoring.Loud snoring.Violently loud snoring.The sound echoed through the hallway with enough force to make Andrew wonder whe

The journey back to Astral Vanguard was far quieter than usual.Normally, Eli would have found something to complain about before they had even left Eclipse Dominion's gates.The weather.The crowd.The length of the walk.The unfairness of cultivation.Anything.Today, however, the large boy remained unusually silent.That alone was enough to make Andrew suspicious.The six initiates walked together through the capital streets while Kael led the way ahead of them. The afternoon sun hung low in the sky, casting long shadows across the stone roads while merchants continued selling their goods to the endless stream of visitors drawn to the Guild Competition.People still spoke about Crimson Monarch Hall.Everywhere.Andrew heard fragments of conversations as they passed."...walked right out of the arena...""...never even touched them...""...what kind of affinity is that...""...that blind guy is terrifying..."The same questions echoed throughout the capital.Nobody understood what t

The next morning arrived much sooner than anyone wanted.At least according to Eli.The large boy stumbled out of his room looking as though he had personally been betrayed by sleep itself."I closed my eyes."Andrew glanced at him."You slept.""Barely.""You slept for eight hours.""It felt like eight minutes."Ronan appeared from another hallway."I hope Kael kills you first today."Eli looked offended."What kind of teammate says that?""The kind forced to listen to you every morning."The group gradually gathered together before making their way toward the training grounds.The atmosphere felt very different from previous training sessions.Everyone knew why.Ten days.That was all they had.Ten days before the Third Round of the Guild Competition.Ten days before they faced Crimson Monarch Hall.Ten days before they fought Malik and whatever terrifying ability he possessed.Ten days before they either advanced or got eliminated.Because of that, their instructors had made a deci

The final day arrived far faster than any of them would have liked.Ten days of relentless training had passed in what felt like a blur of bruises, exhaustion, frustration, and gradual improvement. Every morning had begun before sunrise. Every evening had ended with aching muscles and depleted Aether reserves. By the end of it, even Eli had stopped complaining quite as much.Which, according to Ronan, was the clearest sign that the training had been genuinely brutal.The six members of Astral Vanguard made their way toward one of the open training grounds shortly after breakfast. The sky above the guild was clear, and a cool breeze drifted through the air, carrying with it the sounds of other initiates beginning their own daily routines.Tomorrow would decide everything.Either they would defeat Crimson Monarch Hall and advance to the next round of the Guild Competition, or their journey would end there.The reality of that fact hung over all six of them.Yet strangely enough, the moo

The journey out of Eclipse Dominion felt far lighter than it had only a few hours earlier.Victory had a way of changing everything.The exhaustion remained. The bruises certainly remained. Yet somehow the weight pressing against their shoulders had become easier to carry.Astral Vanguard had advanced.Once again.The six walked together through the enormous pathways that connected the various sections of Eclipse Dominion. Around them, countless guild members and spectators discussed the shocking outcome of the battle they had just witnessed.Everywhere Andrew listened, he heard the same thing.Crimson Monarch Hall.Malik.The reversal.The impossible victory.Many people still sounded convinced they had imagined the entire thing."I still don't understand how they did it.""I thought Astral Vanguard was finished.""That wind user changed everything.""The instructors deserve credit for that strategy."The conversations continued from every direction.Andrew listened quietly while wal