The morning after the strange celestial whisper incident had a heavy stillness to it, as if the world itself was waiting for something to be said. Dawn washed over the Heavenly Blade Sect in soft gold, but Zeref felt none of its warmth. The echoes of last night's voices still throbbed faintly in the back of his mind—mysterious, ancient, and unsettling.
He lay awake long before the sun rose, staring at the wooden beams above his bed, thinking of Miss Lin's expression from the previous night—worried, cautious, yet somehow relieved that he had at least told her the truth. But that was only the first step. She had told him clearly:
"You can't keep something like this hidden from those closest to you. Secrets grow heavy, Zeref."
And he knew she was right. Ren and Yuxin were not just allies in the sect. They were his friends—his first real friends since arriving at the sect, and the two who had stood beside him again and again. Ren with his loud confidence and unwavering loyalty, Yuxin with her quiet intelligence and sharp intuition.
They deserved to know.
But still, a part of him hesitated. The moment he told them, everything would change—his life, their bond, the weight of expectations they would now carry alongside him. And what if they feared him? The idea tightened around his chest like a cold hand.
When he finally stepped out of his room, the sect was already bustling with the usual morning activity. Disciples trained in the courtyard, blades clashing, spiritual energy swirling in soft waves. Birds perched atop the tiled roofs, chirping as if mocking Zeref's heavy mood.
He spotted Ren first.
The boy was attempting to drag Yuxin into a sparring match she clearly had no interest in. She swatted his hand away with a frown.
"Ren, if you try that again, I'll freeze your arm and tell everyone it was an accident."
"You say that as if it wouldn't be worth it," Ren replied dramatically, causing a few disciples nearby to chuckle.
Zeref watched them with a small, reluctant smile. These two… they had already become a part of his life he couldn't imagine losing.
Yuxin noticed him first. Her sharp eyes softened.
"Zeref. You look… tired."
"That's because he always looks like he hasn't slept," Ren joked, but when he met Zeref's eyes, his grin faded. "Hey. Seriously. You good?"
Zeref opened his mouth but found himself unable to speak.
Not here. Not in front of everyone.
He took a slow breath. "Can we go somewhere private? I need to talk to you both."
Ren blinked. "Somewhere private? Why? Did you secretly get in trouble again?"
Yuxin shot him a glare. "Ren. Not now. Look at him."
Ren studied Zeref's face and instantly straightened. "Right. Okay. Lead the way."
Zeref took them toward the bamboo grove behind the eastern training hall—quiet, shaded, far away from prying ears. The grove rustled with a gentle breeze, leaves whispering as if they too sensed the weight of what was to come.
Once they reached the small clearing, Zeref stopped. The silence stretched. Ren shifted awkwardly, while Yuxin simply waited, arms crossed, eyes piercing through him.
"What I'm about to tell you," Zeref said slowly, "can't leave this place."
Ren raised his brows. "Okay… now I'm scared."
Yuxin said nothing, but her posture tightened.
Zeref inhaled deeply. The words hung on the edge of his throat. Miss Lin was right. It's time.
"Something happened yesterday," he began. "Something… strange. Miss Lin knows. And now, you should too."
Ren's humor completely vanished. "Zeref… what happened?"
Zeref clenched his hands. "I heard voices."
They both froze.
"Voices?" Yuxin asked quietly. "As in… illusions? Or—"
"No," Zeref interrupted gently. "Not illusions. They weren't in this world. They felt ancient… distant… but connected to me. They called my name."
Ren's mouth fell open. "What—like ghosts? Or spirits? Or—wait—don't tell me it's… some kind of cultivation hallucination?! That happens if you don't sleep for too long—"
"It's not like that," Zeref said. "It was… something else. Something bigger."
Zeref looked down, then slowly lifted his right hand. With a long breath, he let the energy he had been struggling to understand surge beneath his skin.
The air around them shimmered.
Ren stumbled back. Yuxin's eyes widened in shock. Blue-white motes of light drifted upward like tiny fragments of stardust, swirling around Zeref's fingers. The bamboo around them trembled, reacting to the sudden rise in energy.
This was not qi. Not spiritual energy. Not anything Ren or Yuxin had ever seen.
"What… is that?" Ren whispered.
Yuxin took a step forward, voice trembling despite her composed expression. "Zeref… this energy… it's not elemental. It's not spiritual. It feels… foreign."
Zeref let the lights fade slowly, the grove returning to its stillness. His heart thumped painfully.
"This… is what Miss Lin calls Aetherion," he said softly. "And according to her… I'm… connected to it."
Silence crashed over them.
Ren stared blankly. "Aether… what? Bro, speak a language normal people can understand—"
Yuxin quietly placed a hand on Ren's arm to silence him. Her gaze was sharp, calculating, but not afraid—only stunned.
"So that's what you've been hiding," she murmured. "No wonder your aura always felt unstable. No wonder your growth is absurd. No wonder Miss Lin watches you so closely."
Zeref nodded.
"I didn't understand it myself," he admitted. "Not until yesterday. Not until the voices spoke. Miss Lin knew the moment she sensed my aura. She told me I'm… something like an heir. A chosen vessel of this cosmic energy."
Ren blinked several times. "So… you're like… a celestial prince or something?"
"N-No," Zeref said, flustered. "It's not like that."
"It kind of is," Yuxin muttered. "This entire time you were wielding something that isn't even from this world."
"And you didn't tell us?" Ren added, his voice more hurt than angry.
Zeref flinched. "I… was scared."
Ren paused, then exhaled sharply. "Okay. Fair. If I randomly started glowing like a baby star cluster, I'd probably be scared too."
Zeref let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.
Ren scratched the back of his head. "So… you're not dangerous, right? Like, you're not gonna explode or turn us into cosmic dust?"
Zeref blinked. "What? No!"
Ren sighed dramatically. "Good. Because if you exploded, Miss Lin would kill us for letting it happen."
Yuxin smacked Ren's arm. "Ren, be serious."
"I am serious," Ren protested. "Look at him—he's overwhelmed. Someone has to lighten the mood!"
Zeref couldn't help a small, grateful smile. Ren's ridiculous humor was grounding, even now.
Yuxin stepped closer, expression softening. "Zeref… thank you for telling us. You didn't have to. But you did." Her voice lowered. "We're your friends. Whatever you're carrying, we'll carry it with you."
Ren nodded vigorously. "Yeah! Even if you're some kind of cosmic anomaly or whatever, you're still our Zeref. And if anyone tries to mess with you, I'll… uh… yell at them aggressively!"
Yuxin sighed. "Your threats are terrible."
"Hey! It works sometimes!"
Zeref felt warmth spreading through his chest, easing the heaviness he'd been carrying. He looked at both of them—Ren, with his loud loyalty, and Yuxin, with her quiet strength—and realized he wasn't alone. Not anymore.
"Thank you," he whispered. "Really."
Ren waved it off. "Please. After everything we've been through? You think some cosmic secret is gonna scare us away? Nah."
Yuxin nodded. "Just… promise you won't hide things like this next time."
"I promise," Zeref said firmly.
The bamboo grove rustled softly, as if acknowledging the bond forged here.
Ren stretched his arms. "Okay! Serious moment over. Now we can go get breakfast before it gets cold."
Yuxin rolled her eyes. "You can think about food at a time like this?"
"Of course. Emotional revelations make me hungry."
Zeref shook his head, amused.
But just as they turned to leave, Zeref felt something brush against the edge of his consciousness—a soft whisper, faint but familiar.
Zeref…
He froze.
Ren and Yuxin noticed immediately.
"What is it?" Yuxin asked.
Zeref didn't answer right away. He looked up at the sky—clear, blue, peaceful.
But in the depths of his mind, the stars were whispering again.
Soft. Urgent.
Awakening begins…
His breath hitched.
Ren nudged him gently. "Zeref…? You okay?"
Zeref forced a smile. "Yeah. Just… thinking."
But inside, fear and destiny intertwined like twisting threads.
Miss Lin said his awakening would take time—but the whispers were growing stronger.
Something was coming.
And now, Ren and Yuxin were part of it too.
Zeref exhaled slowly and turned back to his friends. "Let's go," he said.
But even as they walked away from the grove, he knew the peace of this moment wouldn't last.
The stars had spoken.
And there would be no turning back now.
---
To be continued...