The courtyard was alive with stormlight.
Bolt staggered forward, his fists coated in arcs of lightning that crackled wildly, frost crawling up his arms like veins of living ice. Each strike split the training posts into splinters, shards of frozen wood flying with every blow. He panted heavily, his shirt clinging to his sweat-soaked skin, his bandages already bloodied from reopened wounds.
Behind him, Raizen stood with his arms crossed, the iron gleam of his skin reflecting the faint glimmer of the rising sun. "Control it. Don't let the elements fight each other—make them obey."
Bolt roared, slamming his palms together. Lightning surged outward in a violent blast, scattering frost in all directions. The ground cracked under the force, steam rising as water pooled and evaporated. But the backlash slammed into his body, dropping him to one knee. His bones rattled, his breath shallow, but he forced himself to rise again.
"Again," Raizen ordered.
And Bolt obeyed.
Every strike was agony. His muscles burned, his veins felt torn apart as lightning and water fused and clashed within him. Ice formed uncontrollably, spreading across his skin, while sparks carved through it like blades. He screamed, not just in pain, but in determination. He couldn't stop. He wouldn't stop.
In the distance, Celestial Tempest watched again. Akane's eyes burned with frustration; she wanted to drag him out of this madness, but Valea caught her arm. "Don't," she whispered. "This is his fight. He has to find the balance himself."
Kaori stood silent, her hands clenched tightly at her chest. She could feel his spirit energy, raw and unstable, clawing at the edges of his soul. He was close—too close to breaking. And yet, he endured.
Bolt's vision blurred as he staggered again. His knees buckled, but before his body hit the dirt, he slammed his palm down. Ice erupted from the ground, jagged spikes tearing upward, lightning dancing across them in brilliant arcs. For a fleeting moment, the storm and frost held together in harmony, like two halves of the same blade.
Bolt's eyes widened. "I… I did it…"
Raizen smirked faintly. "No. You touched it. That's all. Now do it again—until it no longer hurts."
Bolt gritted his teeth, forcing himself upright, fists sparking with blue fire and glimmering frost. He wasn't just training anymore. He was becoming something new.
Far away, in the depths of a cavern carved from pure darkness, Kairos sat upon a jagged throne of obsidian. His corrupted lightning flickered faintly around him, golden eyes glowing like suns swallowed by shadow. The remnants of his human face had been consumed by abyssal markings, veins of black fire crawling across his skin. His breath came slow, steady, filled with an arrogance he had never carried before.
Before him, the air rippled. From the void itself, the Abyssal Monarch's presence seeped through, unseen yet suffocating. The air grew colder, the shadows lengthened, and Kairos dropped to one knee in reverence.
"My lord," he said, his voice deeper, laced with an unnatural echo.
The Monarch's voice crawled through the cavern like claws scraping stone. "You seek more blood, Kairos?"
Kairos grinned, sharp and cruel. "The Academy still breathes. Celestial Tempest still rises. I want to crush them… to drag them into despair. Not with my own hands—yet. I ask your permission, my lord. Lend me the Abyss Beasts. Let me unleash them upon the Academy's ruins. Let them taste the hunger of the void."
The shadows thickened, pressing against Kairos's chest like a hand. For a moment, silence reigned, broken only by the distant, throbbing sound of something alive within the abyss. Then the Monarch's laughter rolled like thunder, low and chilling.
"Very well."
The cavern trembled. Cracks split the ground as pools of black tar oozed upward. From them rose creatures twisted beyond reason—hulking forms with too many limbs, jaws lined with serrated teeth, eyes glowing with hollow light. Abyss Beasts, born of pure corruption. Their presence warped the air, withering even the stone they walked upon.
Kairos rose, his grin spreading wider as the beasts screeched and thrashed against invisible chains of shadow. "Perfect," he whispered. "Go. Tear down the Academy. Spread the Monarch's will. Leave nothing but ash."
The Monarch's voice echoed one last time, a warning coated in venom. "Do not fail me, Kairos. These beasts are not yours—they are mine. If they fall, so too will your purpose."
Kairos bowed his head, golden eyes burning. "I will not fail."
The beasts writhed, then vanished into the darkness, slipping through cracks in reality itself, streaks of shadow darting toward the horizon.
Back in the Academy courtyard, Bolt dropped to his knees again, chest heaving, his body smoking with frost and sparks. Raizen moved to speak, but Bolt slammed his fist into the ground, forcing himself upright again. His voice was hoarse, nearly broken, but steady.
"Again."
Raizen's eyes narrowed. "…You'll kill yourself."
Bolt's gaze burned like fire, his fists trembling but unyielding. "Then I'll die standing. But I won't stop until I can protect them."
The seniors fell silent. Even Raizen, hardened and unyielding, felt a rare flicker of respect. This boy—this stubborn, reckless boy—was walking the razor's edge between life and death, and yet his will burned brighter than any storm.
As the first Abyss Beast tore through the veil of reality at the edge of the Academy grounds, its roar splitting the sky like thunder, Bolt's body shivered. He didn't yet know what was coming, but something deep within him stirred. A storm was on the horizon.
And this time, it wasn't just Kairos.
It was the Abyss itself.