Morning at the Heavenly Blade Sect never truly felt peaceful. Even when the sky blushed with the first gold of dawn, the air still hummed with the weight of competition, ambition, and whispered rumors that never fully died out. And on this morning, those whispers seemed sharper than ever.
Students gathered in groups across the courtyard, voices low, eyes flicking toward the tall figure walking across the stone path. Zeref had grown used to being watched, but today, the looks carried something new—curiosity mixed with suspicion.
Ren leaned close and whispered under his breath as he walked beside him, "They've been talking since sunrise. You're practically the sect's morning headline."
Yuxin snorted softly while brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Honestly, Zeref… you're too calm about it. Ever since the combat trials, you've been acting weird. You really don't feel anything?"
Zeref forced a faint smile. The truth was… he did feel something. A strange tightness inside his chest, like a sleeping star shifting under his ribs. But he didn't know how to explain that without sounding irrational. "I'm fine," he muttered. "Probably still tired from the ceremony."
Ren raised a brow. "Tired? Brother, you annihilated Darius with a half-broken blade and walked away without panting. You should be the last one complaining about exhaustion."
Zeref opened his mouth to retort—but stopped.
For the briefest second, the world flickered. The sky darkened as if night had swallowed the sun, then brightened again. The stone beneath his feet vibrated with a faint hum. His body went rigid.
Yuxin noticed instantly. "Zeref? What's wrong?"
He blinked rapidly, the illusion—or whatever it was—fading as quickly as it came. "Nothing… I thought I saw—never mind."
But the whispers around them grew louder.
"Did you feel that?"
"The ground shook for a moment."
"It was like… like Aether energy rippled."
Zeref's pulse quickened, but he kept walking, not letting the unease show on his face. He didn't know what had just happened. But deep inside, a quiet instinct whispered:
It wasn't an illusion.
Miss Lin stood near the training grounds, arms crossed, expression unreadable as always, but the moment she saw Zeref, her eyes narrowed—slightly, subtly, but enough to show she felt the shift too.
Zeref pretended not to notice, though the intensity of her gaze made his stomach twist.
Ren nudged him. "Looks like she wants to speak with you alone."
"Of course she does," Yuxin sighed dramatically. "Zeref this, Zeref that. You're going to end up as her personal headache."
Miss Lin approached them with her usual composed grace. "Ren, Yuxin—go warm up with the others. I need Zeref for a moment."
Ren and Yuxin exchanged a look—concern mixed with curiosity—before heading toward the main field.
Zeref swallowed, because Miss Lin's expression wasn't neutral. It was tense. "Is something wrong?" he asked quietly.
Her voice was soft, but her words were sharp. "You tell me. That fluctuation earlier… it centered around you."
He froze. "I… I didn't do anything."
"I know," she said. "That's what worries me."
She led him to a secluded training platform behind the bamboo grove. The air was calmer here, wind threading through leaves like soft whispers. Miss Lin stood before him, arms folded behind her back.
"Zeref," she began, "your energy is changing. Rapidly."
The pressure in his chest tightened again, and he inhaled sharply. "I've been feeling strange since the ceremony. But I don't know why."
"Strange how?"
He hesitated. "Like something is… waking up. Inside me."
Her eyes flickered, and though her expression remained controlled, he sensed her unease. "Describe it."
He searched for words. "Like… like I'm hearing something. But not sound. More like…" He closed his eyes. "Whispers."
That made her stiffen visibly.
Before she could respond, Ren's shout echoed from afar, "Zeref! Miss Lin! You should see this!"
They both turned just as the sky above the academy shimmered.
A constellation—glimmering faintly in the morning blue—began to pulse.
Not like a star.
Like a heartbeat.
Students gasped. Some fell to their knees. The light wasn't bright, but its presence felt heavy, ancient, reverent. As if an unseen force was breathing across the realm.
Zeref stared upward, breath caught in his throat. "What… is that?"
Miss Lin whispered so quietly only he heard, "Aether… reacting again."
He tore his gaze from the sky. "Again? You mean—"
"It pulsed two days ago, when you fell into the earth."
Zeref clenched his fists. "I didn't cause it."
"No," Miss Lin said firmly. "But something is responding to you."
A cold chill ran up his spine.
Around them, disciples murmured anxiously. "I've never seen the constellations move like that."
"That's not normal."
"What does it mean?"
Miss Lin stepped forward, addressing the crowd with her usual authority. "Everyone return to your classes. This is a natural astral fluctuation. Do not panic."
Her tone was steady, but Zeref felt the tension beneath it.
Ren and Yuxin returned to his side the moment the others dispersed.
Ren whispered, wide-eyed, "That wasn't natural. Even I could feel the pressure."
Yuxin nodded, her voice trembling. "Zeref… don't lie to us. Did you do that?"
He shook his head. "I swear I didn't."
The truth was worse.
He feared he could've.
Miss Lin called him again, lowering her voice. "We'll begin your training now. Today is… important."
Zeref followed her, heart pounding with something between fear and inevitability.
They entered the secluded meditation chamber behind the sect—an old stone room carved with ancient symbols, used only by the most advanced disciples. Miss Lin normally wouldn't have brought him here. But today wasn't normal.
She gestured for him to sit. "Focus your mind. Just breathe. Let me observe."
Zeref obeyed, closing his eyes.
For a few seconds, everything was silent.
Then—
A faint whisper brushed against his consciousness.
Not words.
More like distant voices, layered over each other, echoes from a forgotten age.
His breath hitched.
Do you hear us, Starbound…?
Zeref's eyes flew open, but the room was unchanged. Miss Lin watched him intently. "You sensed something."
"Yes," he whispered. "I heard… something. Like voices."
Miss Lin exhaled slowly. "Zeref, listen to me carefully. Do not respond to those voices, whatever they are."
"Why? What are they?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. But only those with abnormal compatibility to Aetherion hear such things."
He tensed. "Then why can I hear them?"
Because you're not normal—not even close.
Miss Lin didn't say it aloud, but he saw the truth flicker in her eyes.
He tried again, focusing deeper.
This time, the whispers grew clearer.
Awaken…
Return…
Starbearer…
His heartbeat thundered in his ears. He forced himself to breathe slowly, but the whispers pressed in harder, the chamber dimming as if the world was sinking into a cosmic tide—
Miss Lin grabbed his wrist, grounding him. "Zeref! Stay with me!"
The voices retreated instantly, like shadows recoiling from a flame.
Zeref gasped, chest heaving. "Miss Lin… what's happening to me?"
She looked at him with a mixture of fear, awe, and determination. "Your synchronization… It's far beyond what I expected. Too fast. Too strong."
"Is that… bad?"
"It's dangerous," she said quietly. "Not just for you. For everyone."
A tremor passed through him.
He didn't want this. He never asked for this.
Miss Lin knelt beside him, her voice gentle but firm. "From today onwards, we must keep this a secret. If the Elders find out, they will confine you. They will run tests. They will use you."
Zeref's throat tightened. "Why me? I'm not special."
Miss Lin's eyes softened with a hint of sadness. "Zeref… you have always been special. Even before you realized it."
He didn't know how to reply.
The wind outside shifted sharply, rattling the chamber doors. The air thickened with a sudden surge of energy.
Miss Lin stood up instantly. "It's happening again—another pulse."
Zeref felt it too—a pressure pushing outward from his chest, expanding, rippling through the earth. He braced himself, eyes wide.
Far away, in temples across the realm, Elders paused their meditations, eyes snapping open.
"What is this disturbance…?"
"Aether… it shifted."
"Someone awakened something forbidden."
Back in the chamber, Zeref stumbled to his feet. "Miss Lin… is this coming from me?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she stepped toward him, placing a steadying hand on his shoulder. "Whatever it is," she murmured, "we will face it together."
Zeref swallowed hard. Fear twisted through him, but her words anchored him.
Outside, the constellation above flickered again, the starlight pulsating like a distant heartbeat.
Voices brushed against Zeref's mind one last time—soft, ancient, almost mournful.
Starborn… we have waited…
He squeezed his eyes shut. "Stop… please just stop…"
Miss Lin caught him before he collapsed. "Zeref!"
As he regained balance, gasping, he whispered, "I don't understand any of this…"
"I know," she said gently. "But I do. And I will explain everything. Not today—but soon."
He looked at her desperately. "Why not now?"
Her eyes drifted to the shimmering constellation. "Because whatever is waking inside you… is waking far too quickly. And if you know the truth before you're ready, it may consume you."
Zeref didn't argue.
He simply stood there, trembling faintly, staring at the sky that seemed to watch him back.
Behind them, Ren and Yuxin approached slowly, concern etched across their faces. "Zeref… are you okay? You disappeared suddenly."
He forced a small smile, trying to look normal. "Yeah. Just… training."
Miss Lin stepped forward, hiding the seriousness in her voice. "He will be fine. Both of you, assist him back to the dorms. Training is finished for today."
As Ren and Yuxin took Zeref's arms, guiding him away, Miss Lin remained in the chamber entrance, her gaze heavy and conflicted.
She whispered under her breath, "The Starbound is awakening faster than the Codex predicted…"
Wind stirred her hair softly, carrying a faint metallic hum—like the world murmuring secrets.
Miss Lin clenched her fists.
"If the Elders notice… if the enemies feel this pulse…"
Her eyes hardened.
"I must protect him. At any cost."
Far above, the constellation pulsed one more time.
Soft.
Steady.
Calling.
Zeref paused mid-step, turning his eyes once more toward the shimmering lights.
He didn't hear voices this time.
He heard a heartbeat.
His own.
Echoing across the sky.
---
To be continued...