THE MAN WITH THE SSS RANK ABILITIES

Chapter 13: Avalon Judgment

Leo was all alone in the reminder room, thinking and deliberating over how everything had happened to him in just the span of a few minutes.

He could still hear the echoes of the students both elite and non-elite murmuring about what had happened, gossiping about him in hushed tones that echoed louder in his mind than any shout could.

“I swear, I saw his eyes glow blood red…”

“He’s an F-rank, how could he even channel something like that?”

“He’s definitely been using dark magic. I mean, that wasn't a normal ability…”

“No way that's legal. The council’s gonna put him in chains.”

The words bit deep, but Leo just sat still, quiet, replaying every second of what had happened. From Elaine’s fall… to the scream… to the moment he felt the black energy consume him.

His fists clenched. No one had come to see him yet—not the teachers, not his friends, not even Sophia.

Then, the door creaked open.

A student council member stepped inside tall, dressed in the midnight black uniform reserved for upper-tier representatives of Avalon. It was Iris Vaughn. She was known to be cold, direct, and loyal to the grandmasters.

“Your presence is required at Avalon Hall immediately,” she said.

Leo stood and followed her without a word. They walked side by side, silent.

As they passed through the academy halls, students peered through windows, paused their training, or stood frozen on stairways. Every eye was locked on Leo.

They didn’t see a student anymore.

They saw a monster.

He heard whispers.

“That’s him…”

“He’s the one who almost brought down the east wing.”

“They say he killed the hooded guy with one punch.”

“Did you hear that scream? It wasn’t human…”

Leo ignored them.

He finally broke the silence between him and Iris. “What’s happening? What’s the council saying?”

“I don’t know exactly,” she replied coolly. “But I saw the Grandmaster and all eight elders seated in deliberation. That only happens when something... unprecedented occurs.”

Leo’s get frightened. That didn’t sound good.

“We’re here,” she said, gesturing toward the giant obsidian doors of Avalon Hall.

“You’re on your own now.”

She turned and walked away.

The two guards standing at the door didn’t move, but the great doors opened on their own.

Leo stepped into the chamber.

The Avalon Hall was vast half cathedral, half courtroom. Tall windows bathed the room in filtered light, with long shadows on the polished marble floor.

At the far end, on a raised floating chair, sat the Grandmaster and the Circle of Eight……the highest authority in the academy.

Council members filled the remaining seats. All of them wore expressions that ranged from serious concern to outright suspicion.

“Have a seat, boy,” barked one of the elders, Mr. Reynolds, a hard nosed, flame able user known for his zero tolerance policy.

Leo sat on the lone chair in the center of the hall, surrounded by silence and judgmental eyes.

Mr. Reynolds continued, “What’s gone over you? How could you do something like that? You unleashed a dark power in the heart of Avalon!”

Another council member leaned forward. “And you did it without warning, without training, and without control. You’re a danger.”

“I… I don’t know how it happened,” Leo said, his voice shaking. “I didn’t summon it. It just… came out. When Elaine was hurt. I lost control.”

“You expect us to believe that?” Reynolds smack. “That a student who barely passed the last ability assessment suddenly awakened a power that even the Grandmaster hesitates to define?”

“Order!” Grandmaster Alaric’s deep voice echoed across the hall, silencing everyone. The man was ancient, his white hair falling down his shoulders like silk, his perfume heavy and cold as iron. “We are not here to speculate. We are here to determine what must be done.”

He turned his piercing eyes on Leo. “What you displayed yesterday, Leo Carter, was not a typical evolution of ability. It was a phenomenon. We have not seen an SSS-ranked awakening in this academy for over a century.”

Gasps echoed around the room.

“But more concerning,” the Grandmaster went on, “is the nature of the energy. Chaotic. Unmeasured. Sentient, perhaps. It responded to emotion, not command. That kind of force cannot be left unchecked.”

“I didn’t ask for this,” Leo said quietly. “I didn’t even know I had it.”

Another elder, a woman with ice-blue eyes, spoke. “Intent is irrelevant. Power that cannot be controlled is a threat to yourself and to us all, and everyone around you.”

“But he saved Elaine,” someone else added from the council floor.

“By nearly leveling half the training field,” came a rebuttal.

Alaric raised his hand again. “Enough.”

He looked down at Leo.

“You’re not being expelled. Not yet. But you will not return to your regular studies. Effective immediately, you are placed under watch.”

“Watch?” Leo repeated.

“You will be monitored day and night. You will undergo testing. Evaluation. Restraint. Until we understand what lies within you.”

“And if you don’t?” Leo asked.

The Grandmaster’s voice grew colder. “Then we seal it.”

Leo’s heart dropped.

Sealing an ability meant permanent suppression. He would never use it again. No training. No growth. Just a branded powerless man in a world built on strength.

“You don’t understand what this is,” Leo said, standing suddenly. “That power… it’s not just a weapon. It saved someone’s life.”

“And next time, it could take a dozen,” Reynolds fired back. “Don’t mistake a coincidence for control.”

“But…….”

“Silence!” Alaric lashes out. “You are dismissed.”

Two enforcers stepped forward to escort Leo out. He glared at the Grandmaster, frustration burning in his chest, but didn’t resist.

As they reached the doors, a council member stood and addressed the room.

“There’s more.”

Everyone turned.

The man held up a report. “We’ve recovered security footage. The masked attacker……he used forbidden techniques, yes. But there’s something stranger. His technique... it wasn’t registered in our system.”

“What do you mean?” Alaric asked.

The councilman hesitated. “He’s not from Avalon.”

The room froze.

“He penetrated our defenses with a concealed rank……possibly higher than S-class. He moved like a phantom. Our own systems couldn’t identify him. He wasn’t testing Leo.”

“He was after Elaine,” Leo said aloud.

The hall went quiet again.

The Grandmaster leaned forward. “And that, perhaps, is the true danger.”

He banged his staff against the floor. “This session is adjourned.”

Leo was taken away…….confined not to a prison, but to the Observation Wing, a place no student wanted to end up. He was alone, watched behind a wall of tempered glass. Inside the room, there was only a bed, a sink, and a sealed console where he could report anything he felt from within the dark power.

Hours passed.

He sat on the edge of the bed, thinking. Wondering.

Who was the hooded figure?

Why Elaine?

And what was this power really?

Suddenly, the lights in the room flickered.

Leo looked up.

Then everything went black.

A voice echoed…..quiet, low, and mechanical…inside his head.

{Synchronization complete. Phase One unlocked.}

Leo shot to his feet, breathing hard. “What the hell is this?”

The console blinks red.

{Awaiting Command...}

Leo stepped back, heart pounding.

Outside the Observation Wing, no alarms sounded. No guards entered.