2025-12-15 20:33:18Asta’s eyes snapped open.
His chest was rising and falling fast, like he had been running for hours. He sat up so quickly the thin mattress on the bunk bed creaked loud. The room was small and gray. Bare walls. A tiny window high up let in cold morning light. The air smelled of dust and old wood.
An old man sat on a wooden chair beside the bed, watching him with calm eyes.
“You okay, boy?”
The old man asked, his voice rough but not unkind.
Asta blinked, rubbed his face.
“Yeah… I think so.”
He looked around again, confusion written all over his face.
“Where the hell am I?”
The old man gave a small smile.
“No need to be scared. You’re in the Labourers’ Unit. Bottom floor of the academy. This is where flameless students work now.”
Asta’s heart dropped.
“Labourers’ Unit…? How did I get here?”
The old man stood up slowly, joints cracking.
“You ask too many questions.”
He said, turning toward the door.
“When we were rounding up the flameless ones after the ceremony, we found you passed out behind the academy. You were burning with fever. We carried you here and gave you some medicine.”
He looked over his shoulder.
“That's enough for you?”
Asta swallowed hard.
“Oh… yeah. Thank you, sir. And sorry for my manners.”
The old man nodded.
“It’s alright. Get up. Come register. From today, this is your new school.”
Asta climbed out of the bunk. His legs felt heavy, like they were made of stone.
As they walked down a dark, narrow hallway, the dragon’s huge red eye flashed in his mind again. Scales. Fire and Chains burning with flames.
His step faltered. His eyes went wide.
The old man noticed.
“You okay, boy?”
Asta shook his head fast, like trying to throw the picture out.
“Yeah… yeah, I’m fine.”
“Walk faster then.”
They reached a bigger room with long tables. A few older students sat there, wearing gray work clothes. When they saw Asta, whispers started.
“Isn’t that Asta Xavier?”
“The one with no flame?”
“Even the Fire Lord’s son ended up here…”
The old man slammed his hand on the table.
“QUIET! All of you!”
Everyone shut up fast.
He pushed a dirty register book toward Asta.
“Write your name. From now on you work with us. Clean floors. Carry coal. Fix things. That’s your life.”
Asta stared at the page. His hand shook as he wrote his name in black ink.
The old man watched him, his voice softer now.
“Don’t look so sad, boy. You’ll get used to it. Some even say they like it here.”
Asta forced a tiny smile. It died the second it appeared.
He finished and walked toward the exit.
The hallway to the outside was long and cold. His footsteps echoed.
Then,bump!
He walked straight into someone wearing a long brown cloak. The hood hid their faces.
“Oh! I’m sorry.”
A soft girl’s voice said.
She stepped around him quickly and disappeared down the hall.
Asta blinked.
“Wait… a girl? What is a girl doing down here?”
He shook his head and kept walking.
An hour later, he stood in front of the huge iron gates of Xavier Mansion
The golden lions looked the same, but everything felt wrong.
Two new guards in black armor blocked the entrance.
“Stop right there.”
One said, his voice hard.
“By order of the new Clan Head, Cassian Xavier,you are forbidden to step foot inside this compound.”
Asta froze.
“You’ve got to be kidding me… really?”
From the left side of the fence, near some trees, a familiar voice called softly.
“Young master Asta!”
Butler Grogerry stood there with a few maids and housekeepers. They were wearing normal clothes,no uniforms. Their eyes were red from crying. Some carried small bags, like they had been thrown out.
Asta ran over.
“Butler! What happened? Why are you all out here? Where are your uniforms?”
Grogery’s old face was full of pain.
“Young master… Master Cassian fired every one of us this morning. Anyone who was close to you… he said we had to leave. The mansion belongs to the strong now. Flameless have no place inside.”
Asta’s heart stopped.
“He… fired all of you? Because of me?”
The maids nodded, some crying quietly.
One whispered.
“He changed the locks. Threw our things in the street. Said the Xavier clan has no room for weakness or anyone who supports
weakness.”
Asta looked up at the mansion.
On the top balcony, Cassian stood watching, his arms folded and a cold smile on his face.
Asta stood there in the cold wind, his fists clenched and his eyes burning.
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Chapter 167
Her voice was low, calm, carrying none of the heat or fury that had been saturating the tunnel moments before. "Breathe."It wasn't a suggestion. It was an order, delivered with the quiet confidence of someone who knew she would be obeyed.For a long moment, Cassian just stared at her, his chest heaving with angry breaths, flames still flickering along his arms. Then, slowly, the fire began to die down. The tension in his shoulders eased fractionally. His jaw was unclenched enough that he could probably speak without grinding his teeth.He took a deep breath,in through his nose, out through his mouth,then another. The flames extinguished completely, and some of the wild, desperate quality left his eyes.Kira waited until she was sure he'd regained control, then let her hand drop from his shoulder. She turned to face Marcus and Sera, and her expression remained calm, professional, but not unkind."Marcus. Sera." Her voice carried that same low, soothing quality. "Did you find the R
Chapter 166
Cassian's face went through a rapid transformation. The worry and concern that had been there moments ago,the relief at finding Marcus and Sera alive,drained away like water through a sieve. What replaced it was something darker, something that made the air around him seem to heat up noticeably.His jaw clenched so tight that the muscles stood out in sharp relief. His eyes, which had been scanning his teammates for injuries, went hard and cold. His hands, still wreathed in the fading remnants of his flame attack, clenched into fists so tight his knuckles went white."No?" The word came out quiet, almost a whisper, but it carried more threat than a shout would have. "No? You didn't find it?"Then the anger exploded."NO?!"His fist shot out and slammed into the dungeon wall with a force that sent cracks spiderwebbing through the stone. The impact echoed through the tunnel like a gunshot, and chips of rock scattered across the floor. His knuckles split open from the force of the blow,
Chapter 165
Marcus,the young man who'd been holding the flame torch earlier,had extinguished it minutes ago when they'd heard the beasts getting closer. Now they sat in complete darkness, relying on sound and feeling alone to tell them where the danger was.Sera was pressed against his side, her injured leg stretched out at an awkward angle that had to be painful but that she couldn't adjust without making noise. Her hands gripped Marcus's arm so tightly he could feel her nails digging into his skin through his sleeve, but he didn't complain. The pain kept him focused, kept him from spiraling into panic.They'd been running for what felt like hours but was probably only minutes. When the flame beasts had finally caught up to them in that tunnel, when death had seemed inevitable, Lyra had saved them.Lyra was the team's specialist,a rare flame wielder whose ability wasn't about generating heat or creating fire for destruction. Her flames were about illusion, about manipulation of light and percept
Chapter 164
Mira stopped her pacing mid-step and turned to face Asta fully, her expression a mixture of exasperation and impatience. Her hands went to her hips in that characteristic stance she took when she was about to call someone out on their nonsense."Quit stalling." She said, her voice sharp and direct. "Come on, let's get going. We don't have time for whatever existential crisis you're having right now. We need to move."Asta shook his head slightly, like he was physically trying to dislodge the thoughts that had been weighing him down. "Right. Yeah. Sorry."His voice was still a bit distant, but he was making an effort to be present, to focus on what was in front of him rather than what was churning around in his head. He moved toward the group, forcing his feet to carry him with purpose instead of that zombie-like autopilot he'd been functioning on.The four of them turned as a unit and headed toward the transportation area. Sitting at the edge of the courtyard, magnificent and sligh
Chapter 163
The stocky laborer continued staring at him for another few seconds, then reached out and grabbed a handful of his friend's shirt collar. "We're going to be late." He said, his voice carrying long-suffering patience as he started physically dragging the taller man down the hallway. "The next arena match is about to start, and you know how the commentator gets if we miss the opening announcements.""Hey! I can walk on my own! Let go of my,ow, okay, okay, I'm coming!"The two of them turned and headed toward the arena entrance, the tall one still protesting about the shirt-grabbing while the stocky one just kept pulling him along, their voices fading as they disappeared around the corner.Behind them, Asta continued his solitary walk through the facility corridors, completely unaware that anyone had tried to talk to him, completely absorbed in the spiral of his own thoughts.‘Would you really just sit back and watch another boy come in and take your place?’"I'm not watching." Asta
Chapter 162
Asta's footsteps echoed down the hallway, a steady rhythm that matched the churning thoughts in his head. Each step felt heavy, weighted down by words that kept replaying in his mind no matter how hard he tried to push them away.‘Your father will be turning in his grave... if you actually allow Cassian to fully take charge as the clan leader.’The words circled around and around, digging deeper with each repetition. His godfather's voice, usually so warm and supportive, had been sharp with disappointment when he'd said that. Cutting. Like he was trying to wound Asta into action, trying to shame him into claiming something Asta wasn't sure he even wanted.His hands were shoved deep into his pockets, his shoulders slightly hunched, his eyes fixed on the floor ahead of him rather than where he was actually going. People passed him in the corridor,other initiates, instructors, facility workers,but he barely registered them as anything more than moving obstacles to navigate around."What
You may also like
unparalleled sword sovereign
GCsage26.8K viewsThe God of War Calen Storm
Cindy Chen31.2K viewsA Dream Harem Life Built With Superior Firepower
Runaway_Cactuar20.8K viewsDragon Covenant
Camellia19.9K viewsThe Blade Of Asher Storms
Jennifer Rex274 viewsThe Making of a Living Legend
Salvaged1.0K viewsThere Are No Heroes
Semilir562 viewsSupreme Rebirth: Reincarnation Of The Morning Star
S.Betelgeuse908 views