The moment Lysan dismissed him early, the room erupted in whispers.
Eryndor ignored them.
He stepped out of the classroom and into the towering glass hallway of the Ascendant God Academy, where sunlight filtered through runic skylights, painting shifting patterns across the marble floor. His mind was still half in the Astral Sky, the faint sensation of Ether lingering like an invisible thread across his fingers.
He exhaled.
"One lesson and I'm tired…" he muttered. "This place is no joke."
He tightened his coat and started down the hallway toward the dorms. He wanted to rest before meeting up with Kaelus and Darius. The earlier training had stretched his mind more than his body.
But halfway down the corridor—something stopped him.
Footsteps.
Heavy.
Steady.
Deliberate.
Eryndor looked up.
Two figures were walking toward him.
One was tall, sharp-eyed, clad in a white jacket with silver embroidery. The kind of student whose presence made people instinctively step out of the way.
Rein Clark.
God Candidate Of The Dominion Seat. Top-class prodigy. Famous for winning last year's Academy Junior Tournament with one hand burned and broken.
The other—
The temperature shifted the moment she appeared.
Not hotter.
Not colder.
Just… heavier. Like the air bowed without meaning to.
Principal/ Headmistress Seraphina Caldris.
Flaming red hair tied behind her head, glowing softly like embers. A calm expression, but behind those eyes was someone who could melt the academy by accident if she exhaled too deeply.
Their steps echoed in perfect sync.
Eryndor slowed.
Rein's gaze locked onto him first.
Seraphina's followed.
They stopped directly in front of him.
For a heartbeat, no one spoke.
Then Seraphina tilted her head slightly.
"Eryndor Nasarik."
Her voice was smooth—warm like a hearthfire, but with an edge beneath it that warned: this flame burns worlds.
Eryndor bowed slightly out of respect.
"Principal."
Rein crossed his arms beside her, studying Eryndor quietly.
Seraphina took a single step closer. "Leaving class early on your first day… Lysan said you managed to grasp Ether already?"
Her tone wasn't accusatory.
It was curious.
Evaluating.
Testing.
Eryndor nodded. "I grasped the basics. He said any more would skip the curriculum."
Rein raised an eyebrow. "You grasped Ether in one lesson?"
Eryndor didn't reply immediately.
Rein stepped forward, eyes narrowing. "Do you know how many students here nearly pass out trying to feel it, let alone control it?"
"I didn't control it," Eryndor said calmly. "Just understood it."
Rein's jaw flexed—equal parts irritation and interest.
Seraphina's lips curved into the faintest smile.
"You're honest. Good. I dislike students who pretend at humility or power." She gestured lightly to Rein. "Rein here was the one who informed me that a newcomer in Class C handled Ether with more stability than most Class A candidates."
Rein clicked his tongue. "I didn't 'inform' you," he muttered. "I mentioned it."
Seraphina ignored him.
Her eyes focused solely on Eryndor now—sharp, assessing.
"You remind me of someone," she murmured. "Someone who learned to bend the world before the world realized it was being bent."
Eryndor's brows lifted slightly. "Is that a compliment?"
Rein snorted. "From her? It's the equivalent of kneeling and handing you her throne."
Seraphina shot Rein a glance that visibly made him tense… then straighten like a soldier at attention.
She turned back to Eryndor.
"Walk with us."
It wasn't a request.
Eryndor fell into step beside them as they moved down the hallway. Rein walked on his other side, expression unreadable.
Students passing by whispered frantically:
"Is that the principal?"
"And Rein—wait, who's that between them?"
"Is that the new recruit from the Nasarik branch?"
"No way he's important enough for that…"
"Shh! They'll hear you!"
Seraphina didn't seem to register any of it.
Her voice came soft but precise:
"Tell me, Eryndor… what exactly did you see when you touched Ether?"
He paused.
Then answered honestly:
"I saw… nothing. And that's when I understood it."
Rein glanced at him.
Seraphina's eyes widened just slightly—like someone who found the final missing sentence in a book they'd been studying for years.
"Good," she whispered.
Then she stopped walking.
Eryndor and Rein halted beside her.
Seraphina's gaze sharpened, the flames in her hair flickering briefly.
"One more question."
She leaned in—close enough that Eryndor felt the faint heat of her aura ripple across his skin.
"What do you plan to do with the power you gain here?"
Eryndor didn't hesitate.
"Protect my family. And anyone who can't protect themselves."
Rein blinked.
Seraphina exhaled through her nose, and for the first time, something like approval sparked in her eyes.
"Then," she said, "Ascendant God Academy may benefit from you… more than you benefit from it."
Rein stepped forward, tone low. "And I want to see if you're actually worth the rumors."
Eryndor raised an eyebrow. "Rumors?"
Rein smirked.
Seraphina's voice cut in:
"You two will cross paths again… soon."
And with that, she began walking once more.
Rein lingered a moment, giving Eryndor a sideways glance.
A challenge.
A promise.
Then he followed her.
Eryndor stood alone in the hallway, heart steady, mind sharp.
He exhaled.
"…Yeah. This academy is going to be interesting."