The hallway was quiet.
Nexar followed the guard without speaking.
His footsteps echoed against the metal floor.
One after another.
Slow.
Steady.
The words from the Manual were still in his mind.
Something old has noticed the frost.
He didn't know what it meant.
He didn't even know what the frost was.
But he had learned one thing since coming here.
Whenever the Manual warned him about something, ignoring it was usually a bad idea.
The guard stopped in front of a large metal door.
"Wait here."
Nexar looked at the door.
Beyond it, he could hear voices.
Many of them.
The guard entered.
Nexar remained outside.
He looked down.
There was frost on the floor.
Only a little.
A thin white line running underneath the door.
Nexar crouched and touched it.
Cold.
Nothing unusual.
At least, nothing he could feel.
Then the void inside his chest moved.
Nexar immediately pulled his hand back.
The frost disappeared.
His eyes narrowed.
For a few seconds, he simply stared at the empty floor.
Then the door opened.
"Come in."
Nexar stood and entered.
Inside was a large preparation hall.
Several candidates were already there.
Some were talking quietly. Others were checking their equipment. A few stood alone, trying not to look nervous.
Nexar recognized several faces from the previous day's assessment.
Nobody paid much attention to him.
That was fine.
He preferred it that way.
A woman entered the room.
The conversations stopped.
She wore the same dark uniform as the other academy officers, but she carried no weapon and had no visible equipment.
She simply stood in front of the group.
"Today's assessment will be different."
A screen appeared behind her.
A map.
It showed a large area covered with trees, hills, streams and several marked locations.
"There is an extraction point at the northern end of the training zone."
She pointed toward it.
"Your task is to reach it."
A candidate raised his hand.
"What are the conditions?"
The woman looked at him.
"Survive."
The room became quiet.
"You have thirty minutes."
Another candidate asked, "Are we allowed to use our abilities?"
"That's the purpose of the test."
A few people smiled.
Nexar didn't.
Something about the room felt wrong.
Not dangerous.
Just... quiet.
As if everyone was waiting for something.
The woman looked at the group one last time.
"Once you enter, the doors will remain closed until the assessment ends."
She paused.
"Do not leave the marked area."
The map changed.
Nexar noticed something immediately.
One section had been left completely blank.
No trees.
No hills.
No streams.
Nothing.
Just an empty circle.
He pointed toward it.
"What's there?"
The woman looked at him.
For the first time, her expression changed.
Only slightly.
"Nothing."
Nexar looked at the circle.
"Then why is it marked?"
She didn't answer immediately.
"Stay away from it."
That was all she said.
The doors opened.
Cold air entered the hall.
The candidates began moving.
Nexar followed.
The training zone was larger than he expected.
Tall trees covered the area, their branches disappearing into a layer of mist.
The ground was damp beneath his boots.
Nexar walked slowly.
He could hear people moving ahead of him.
Branches breaking.
Footsteps.
Low voices.
Then...
Nothing.
He stopped.
Something had changed.
The birds were gone.
The wind had stopped.
Even the distant voices had disappeared.
Nexar looked around.
The forest appeared normal.
But it didn't feel normal.
He continued walking.
A few minutes later, he found a small stream.
He crouched beside it.
The water was moving.
But there was ice along the edges.
Nexar stared at it.
The temperature wasn't low enough for ice.
He touched the water.
Cold.
Very cold.
Then he noticed something else.
The ice wasn't completely white.
It had a faint blue color.
Nexar stood.
A sound came from behind him.
He turned.
Nothing.
He waited.
Still nothing.
Then—
Crack.
A branch broke somewhere among the trees.
Nexar looked toward the sound.
"Who's there?"
No answer.
He took a few steps forward.
The mist became thicker.
He could barely see more than a few meters ahead.
Then he noticed a footprint.
It wasn't his.
Nexar crouched.
The footprint was deep.
Whatever had made it was heavy.
But the strange part wasn't the footprint.
The ground around it was frozen.
Nexar slowly stood.
His hand moved toward his chest.
The void was awake again.
Not violently.
Just enough for him to know it was there.
He looked between the trees.
For a moment, he thought he saw someone standing in the mist.
A tall figure.
Completely still.
Watching him.
Nexar blinked.
The figure was gone.
He remained where he was.
The Third Eye Manual opened by itself.
A single page appeared.
No explanation.
No description.
Only one sentence.
[Do not follow it.]
Nexar stared at the words.
Then looked toward the direction where the figure had disappeared.
A faint smile touched his face.
"That makes me want to follow it even more."
The page closed.
Nexar turned away.
He started walking in the opposite direction.
One step.
Two.
Three.
Then he heard a voice.
Very faint.
Almost carried through the mist.
"Nexar..."
He stopped.
Nobody here knew his name.
At least...
Nobody should.
Slowly, he turned around.
The forest was empty.
Then the voice came again.
"Nexar."
This time it was closer.
Nexar's expression hardened.
He looked toward the blank section on the map.
The area he had been told to avoid.
A thin layer of frost began forming across the ground.
It moved slowly between the roots.
Toward the forbidden zone.
Nexar stared at it.
Then he looked toward the extraction point.
He had a choice.
Follow the test.
Or find out who was calling him.
For several seconds, he stood completely still.
The smart choice was obvious.
Reach the extraction point.
Finish the assessment.
Don't get involved with something the academy itself had ordered him to avoid.
But Nexar had survived fifteen years by learning something else.
Sometimes the safest path wasn't the one that looked safe.
The void inside his chest moved once more.
This time, Nexar felt something answer it.
Far away.
Beyond the trees.
His eyes narrowed.
Whatever was inside that forest wasn't calling him because it wanted him to pass the test.
It was calling him because it already knew who he was.
Nexar turned toward the forbidden area.
He began walking.
Behind him, somewhere deep inside the forest—
something opened its eyes.
And for the first time since Nexar entered the training zone, the frost stopped spreading.
It waited for him.