The hallway of Aethelgard Academy smelled of ozone and floor wax, a combination that usually heralded trouble for students like Santiago. He pressed his back against the cool, locker-lined wall, feeling the rhythmic thrum of magical wards in the building’s foundation. It was a comforting hum, usually. Today, it sounded like a countdown."Hey, Pratama. You look like you’re waiting for a bus that’s never going to show up," Jax barked, his voice echoing off the vaulted ceilings. He stood with two of his sycophants, their fingers twitching with practiced, lazy sparks of kinetic energy.Santiago kept his eyes low, calculating the distance between him and the fire exit. "Look, Jax, I’m just trying to get to Advanced Runes. Can we not do this today?"Jax laughed, a sharp, ugly sound. "Do what? We’re just checking in. You haven’t shown much progress in the dueling pits lately. It’s almost like you’re hiding something.""I'm just a slow learner," Santiago muttered, his heart hammering against

The note lay on the bed like a jagged piece of shrapnel. Santiago didn’t sleep. He spent the remaining hours of the night staring at the ceiling, listening to the rhythmic, soul-crushing hum of the academy’s wards. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the blue shimmer of the energy he’d pulled from Marcus. It felt like a hungry mouth in the center of his chest, waiting to be fed.When the morning bell finally shrieked, slicing through the dawn, Santiago dragged himself out of bed. He felt hollow, his skin crawling with the anticipation of the midnight meeting. But first, he had Professor Harth’s class.He didn't bother with breakfast. He kept his head down as he navigated the corridors, slipping into the lecture hall just as the heavy oak doors began to creak shut."You’re late, Pratama," Professor Harth barked from the podium. He was a man built like a boulder, his robes dusted with pulverized chalkboard chalk and static. "Find a seat. We’re beginning the Gravitational Anchoring seg

The clinical silence of the infirmary felt like a physical weight, heavier than the gravity spell that had nearly shattered Santiago’s ribs. He lay back against the stiff, starch-scented pillows, his chest rising and falling in shallow, measured hitches. Nadia didn't move from the doorway, her silhouette still etched against the dim, flickering corridor light like a shadow that refused to fade."You’re staring," Santiago said, his voice raspy and thin.Nadia finally stepped back into the room, the heels of her boots clicking with a sharp, rhythmic precision that made his head ache. She pulled the chair closer to his bed, sitting down with a grace that felt entirely too calculated for the late hour."I’m observing," she corrected, her eyes scanning his face. "And I’m waiting for you to stop pretending that you don’t know exactly what you are."Santiago forced a lopsided, tired grin, looking at the ceiling. "A student who got a bit too eager in the practice field? That’s the version the

The corridor was a blurred tunnel of stone and shadow, vibrating with the monstrous, thudding footsteps of the beast behind them. The creature’s roar—a sound like grinding tectonic plates—tore through the air, vibrating in Santiago’s very marrow."Left, through the stacks!" Nadia shouted, her voice tight but precise. She shoved a heavy mahogany chair into their path as they rounded the corner. "It’s too big to make the turn without losing speed!""It’s not slowing down!" Santiago yelled back, his lungs burning. "It’s just smashing through everything!"A deafening crunch echoed behind them as the Chimera plowed through the chair, wood splintering like matchsticks."Keep your head down!" Nadia barked. She ducked beneath a low-hanging chandelier, pulling Santiago with her. "We need a bottleneck. If we hit the restricted section, the heavy iron doors might hold it!""It’s not just chasing us, Nadia!" Santiago gasped, darting between the towering, ancient bookshelves. "Look at the floor! T

The heavy, resonant thud of the enchanted iron door sealing shut echoed through the damp tunnel like a death knell. Santiago lunged forward, slamming his palms against the cold metal, but it was as solid as a mountain."It’s no use," Nadia said, her voice unusually hollow. She didn't move to help him; she was staring at the floor, her eyes darting across the etched map they had just discovered. "These locks are keyed to the school’s core mana-grid. If we try to force them, the entire wing will go on lockdown."Santiago pulled his hands back, his heart hammering against his ribs like a bird in a cage. "So we’re trapped? We just walked into a cage because I wanted to be a hero?""Don't do that," Nadia snapped, though her hands were trembling as she tucked her notebook away. "Don't turn into a victim now. We needed to know. Now we know.""We know we’re in a basement that’s farming students like crops," he hissed, turning to face her. The gray light in his arm flared, casting long, errati