Chapter 224 — The Next Day: Synchronization
Morning fell upon the guild with unusual brutality.
Not because of a monster.
Not because of a portal.
But because of Aeris.
He was already awake.
And that was worrying.
In the training yard, a wide circle had been cleared. The runes on the ground pulsed softly, as if they sensed something abnormal was about to happen.
Aeris stood at the center, breathing slowly.
His flow was unstable.
Not chaotic.
Not weak.
Just… too dense.
— "Breathe," said Azevran calmly.
— "I'm trying…" Aeris replied. "But it feels like my energy wants to burst out on its own."
Azevran nodded.
— "Normal. Your flow is no longer only yours."
Aeris clenched his fists.
— "Since the synchronization… it feels like I have a second energy‑heart. It beats… differently."
— "That's not just a feeling," the king answered.
"When you synchronized your flow with mine, you didn't copy my power. You tuned it to yours."
He stepped closer.
— "The Tempesborne Form isn't a classic transformation. It's your flow accepting a higher rhythm."
Aeris frowned.
— "So if I force it…"
— "You tear yourself apart from the inside," Azevran finished bluntly.
A shiver ran through Aeris.
— "Great. Very reassuring."
On the side, Oris sat on a crate, eating casually.
— "He's learning to become a living storm and you tell him 'if you fail you explode.' Honestly, you're not very pedagogical."
Kae, arms crossed:
— "He learns better when he's scared."
— "I heard that," Aeris snapped.
— "That was the point."
Azevran raised his hand, and the air around Aeris began to vibrate.
— "Focus on the sensation. When our flows synchronized, your energy didn't change in nature. It changed in cadence."
Aeris closed his eyes.
He remembered.
The precise moment.
When Azevran's flow had coursed through him.
Not like a wave…
But like a continuous current, massive, steady, crushing.
His own flow had resisted.
Then… accepted.
The air around him contracted.
— "Aeris…" Lysandra said from the balcony.
"Don't let the form take control. You're the one in command."
The ground cracked slightly beneath his feet.
Lines of bluish energy appeared on his arms, pulsing in rhythm with his heart.
— "That's it…" murmured Azevran.
"You're entering the Tempesborne Form."
But suddenly—
BOOM.
A discharge exploded outward.
Aeris was thrown back and rolled across the ground.
Silence.
Then Veyra:
— "Well. That was bad, but promising."
Aeris groaned as he got up.
— "I lasted… three seconds?"
— "Two and a half," Dervan corrected.
— "Thanks."
Azevran stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.
— "You made the classic mistake. You tried to imitate my power."
Aeris lifted his head.
— "So what should I…?"
— "Let it pass," he answered.
"Like wind through a valley. Not like a mountain blocking it."
Oris grinned.
— "In summary: stop trying to look cool too fast."
— "Shut up."
Kronn, leaning against a wall, yawned.
— "He's progressing quickly."
Everyone turned to him.
— "…You were watching?" Seline asked.
— "No," he replied.
"I was sleeping."
Azevran gave a faint smile.
— "Rest five minutes. Then we start again."
Aeris took a deep breath, fists clenched.
He looked at his hands, still faintly glowing.
— "This time… I won't force the storm."
He raised his eyes.
— "I'll become its passage."
Oris clapped his hands.
— "OKAY. That was stylish. I approve."
Kae sighed.
— "He's learning too fast. That worries me."
Above them, the air still vibrated.
The training had only just begun.
Chapter 225 — The Catalyst (or How Not to Explode During Training)**
The wind whistled softly around the training ground.
The five‑minute break had passed.
Azevran opened his eyes and declared calmly:
— "Alright. Let's resume."
Aeris lifted his head, still a little pale.
— "Already…?"
— "Yes," Azevran replied. "Otherwise your body will forget what it just endured. And that would be… needlessly painful."
Aeris swallowed.
— "Great."
Azevran continued:
— "Aeris, you must focus. Don't force the flow. Let it circulate through your body… like a current of air."
— "A current of air?" Aeris repeated.
— "Yes. Not a storm."
Aeris nodded.
— "Alright."
He inhaled deeply, filling his lungs, then exhaled slowly. His eyes closed.
He murmured:
— "I mustn't force it… I must let it circulate freely within me… let my body synchronize… adapt to this higher flow… the king's flow…"
Around him, energy began to ripple.
At first, it was light.
Then… much less so.
Massive currents formed around his body, distorting the air. Aeris clenched his teeth and tried to guide this power as Azevran had instructed.
— "Don't recreate my power," Azevran said firmly.
— "You must synchronize it. Connect it. Let it circulate."
Aeris pushed a little harder.
Bad idea.
The veins on his face bulged violently. His breathing grew uneven.
A trickle of blood escaped his mouth.
— "Ow…" he murmured.
Blackstar frowned.
— "I think this will be complicated. His body isn't yet strong enough to let a flow of this level circulate."
Azevran nodded slowly.
— "Yes… at this rate, he'll break before he adapts."
Aeris, still focused, muttered between breaths:
— "I can still hear you perfectly, you know…"
Blackstar ignored the remark and narrowed his eyes, clearly lost in thought.
— "…What if you created a catalyst?"
Azevran turned his head toward him.
— "A catalyst?"
— "Yes. Something to regulate the flow. To let it circulate without destroying him inside."
Azevran fell silent for a moment.
— "…I hadn't considered that."
He fixed his gaze on Blackstar.
— "Where did you see this?"
— "A hunter from the Black Eclipse Guild. He created one to survive a power that should have killed him."
Azevran exhaled lightly.
— "That hunter must have been extremely powerful. Even for beings like me, it's a risky method."
Blackstar smirked.
— "Or just very stubborn."
Azevran raised his hand.
— "Stop, Aeris."
Aeris broke his concentration and nearly collapsed to one knee, gasping.
— "Haa… haa…"
He wiped the blood from his chin.
— "What now…?"
— "We have another approach," Blackstar said.
— "If you create a catalyst, you can let the flow circulate without your body taking the full hit."
Aeris blinked.
— "Wait… that's possible? And more importantly… how do I do that?"
Kae approached calmly.
— "First of all, you're going to stop bleeding yourself dry."
He placed a hand on Aeris's shoulder. A gentle energy spread, closing the micro‑wounds inside.
— "There. Fixed. Try not to die during training, it complicates the paperwork."
Aeris sighed.
— "Thanks… I guess."
Blackstar pointed to the ground.
— "Sit. Meditation position."
Aeris obeyed and sat cross‑legged.
— "Kae will stabilize your energy," Blackstar continued.
— "Azevran will maintain synchronization with his flow.
— You focus only on one thing: creating a point of balance."
Kae placed his hand on Aeris's back.
— "I'll stabilize. If you mess up, I'll tell you. Nicely."
— "I doubt that," Aeris muttered.
Azevran placed his hand on the other side.
— "Don't think about power. Think about circulation."
Aeris closed his eyes.
Inside him, the Tempesborne flow still raged, unstable.
He tried to imagine it not as brute force…
But as a cycle.
A center.
A passage.
— "A catalyst…" he murmured.
— "Not a weapon… not an explosive core…"
Outside, Oris, watching from afar, whispered:
— "You think he'll explode? Because I bet no."
Blackstar shot him a deadly glare.
— "Oris."
— "What? It's financial encouragement."
The energy around Aeris shifted.
It became more compact.
More stable.
Azevran narrowed his eyes.
— "…Interesting."
Kae smiled faintly.
— "He's getting it."
Aeris clenched his fists.
— "It feels like… it's turning without tearing me apart…"
Then suddenly—
— "OW."
— "What?" Kae asked.
— "It tickles inside!"
— "It's NOT supposed to tickle!"
Oris burst out laughing.
— "The first catalyst that itches from the inside, incredible."
Azevran ignored the remark.
— "Continue, Aeris. You're on the right path."
The flow kept circulating, smoother than before.
Unstable… but alive.
Training had only just begun.
Chapter 226 — The Catalyst's First Spark**
Silence fell again over the training ground.
A heavy silence.
Charged with energy.
And slightly awkward.
Aeris sat in meditation, legs crossed, back straight…
or at least he tried.
— "My legs hurt…" he murmured.
— "Ignore the pain," Azevran replied.
— "Easy to say when you don't have cramps," Aeris grumbled.
Blackstar sighed.
— "Focus. If you lose it now, the flow will reject you."
Kae, still with his hand on Aeris's shoulder, added calmly:
— "Your energy is stable. But your mind…"
(He paused.)
— "It's panicking."
— "I'M NOT PANICKING," Aeris shot back immediately.
Then:
— "…Alright, maybe a little."
Azevran crossed his arms.
— "The catalyst cannot be born from fear. It must arise from a point of balance between your body, your flow… and my resonance."
— "So basically," summarized Oris from the edge of the field, "he has to invent something that doesn't exist, with energy he can't control, synchronized to a king. Easy."
— "Why are you still here?" Blackstar asked.
— "Moral support."
— "You're harming moral support."
— "I'm doing my best."
Aeris closed his eyes again.
He inhaled slowly.
Let it circulate…
Don't force…
Don't resist…
The Tempesborne flow began to appear around him once more.
But this time, it didn't lash out violently.
It rippled.
Like a mastered wind.
Azevran frowned slightly.
— "Good… He's starting to understand."
Kae sensed something shift.
— "His energy is gathering at the center."
— "The center of what?" Veyra asked.
— "Of himself," Dervan replied.
— "Ah."
— "…"
Suddenly, Aeris grimaced.
— "It burns…"
— "Normal," said Azevran.
— "NO, NOT NORMAL," Aeris shouted. "IT REALLY BURNS."
The flow contracted sharply.
A wave of energy spread outward, forcing Oris back two steps.
— "OKAY," Oris declared, "I'll shut up."
Blackstar clenched his teeth.
— "Aeris, create a structure. Not a weapon. Not a form. A passage."
— "A… passage?" Aeris repeated.
— "Yes. A point where the flow can enter, circulate, exit… without destroying you."
Aeris inhaled deeply.
Then, in his mind, he visualized something simple.
Not a weapon.
Not a transformation.
A core.
A junction point.
The flow shifted.
Azevran opened his eyes slightly.
— "…Interesting."
A bluish‑gray glow appeared at Aeris's chest.
Discreet.
Stable.
— "HE DID IT?" Nyss asked, leaning forward.
— "Not yet," Blackstar replied.
— "But he's on the right path."
The catalyst formed slowly.
Imperfect.
Fragile.
But real.
Aeris opened one eye.
— "…Feels like I swallowed a storm trying to tidy itself up."
— "That's exactly it," Azevran confirmed.
— "GREAT."
— "Congratulations, you're alive."
The flow gradually calmed.
Aeris collapsed backward.
— "I'm exhausted…"
— "Normal," Kae said, removing his hand.
— "You just survived something few hunters could endure."
Oris gave a thumbs‑up.
— "Respect. Also, you're still bleeding a bit, but it looks cool."
Blackstar looked down at Aeris, lying on the ground, panting but faintly smiling.
— "Good. Tomorrow… we stabilize."
Azevran smiled.
— "And the day after… we'll see if he truly deserves this form."
Aeris weakly raised a thumb.
— "…I'm going to die, aren't I?"
— "Probably," Oris replied.
— "Shut up."
The wind fell still.
Chapter 227 — Nocturnal Flows and Questionable Conversations
Night had fallen over the guild.
Silence reigned…
a deceptive silence.
For even when everything seemed calm, the guild never truly slept.
Kronn, however, was asleep.
Standing.
Against a wall.
Still standing.
With every breath, the wall vibrated slightly.
— "…He's going to end up fusing with the building," someone murmured.
No one knew who had spoken.
---
In the courtyard, Aeris continued his training.
The Tempesborne Form was no longer just an unstable state.
The core he had created pulsed softly in his chest, steady, almost alive.
His senses were sharper.
The wind seemed slower.
His body responded better… but the pressure remained.
— "It's not supposed to feel this heavy…" he muttered.
He took a step.
Then another.
The ground cracked slightly beneath his foot.
— "…Oops."
He froze immediately, holding back his flow.
That was when a presence appeared behind him.
— "You know," Nyss said with a smile, "new powers always have a particular scent."
Aeris jumped.
— "STOP DOING THAT!"
— "Relax, I was just watching you…"
She tilted her head.
— "Well no. I was also judging you."
— "…Great."
Nyss vanished for a fraction of a second, then reappeared in front of him, crouched, elbows on her knees.
— "When you truly master your flow, you'll be able to move without leaving a trace. No sound. No presence."
— "Like you?"
— "No."
She smiled.
— "Better. I cheat."
Aeris frowned.
— "And if I get lost in this flow?"
Nyss shrugged.
— "Then you become dangerous. And interesting."
She vanished again.
— "…She's creepy," Aeris muttered.
— "And annoying," added another voice.
Seline appeared, arms crossed.
— "Don't listen to her. Disappearing is HER power. Not yours."
— "I figured. Even the king…" Aeris hesitated.
— "Even Azevran doesn't do that."
— "Exactly. Your flow is meant to strengthen, accelerate, stabilize. Not play hide‑and‑seek."
Seline fixed him with a look.
— "You're continuing?"
Aeris clenched his fists.
— "Yes."
He inhaled deeply.
— "I want to reach rank S."
Seline blinked.
— "Still that dream…"
She sighed, then smiled faintly.
— "I don't know why you're so stubborn… But good luck. You'll need it."
---
In the hall, Oris and Kae spoke in low voices.
— "Tell me," Oris began, "did you see Blackstar's face when Nyss erased the guard's arm?"
— "I saw everything," Kae replied.
He sighed.
— "And I'm one hundred percent sure it wasn't Nyss speaking at that moment."
— "Yeah… that was pure Blackstar."
Oris crossed his arms.
— "Seriously, I don't get why he protects humans so much."
— "Maybe because he was one," Kae answered calmly.
Oris grimaced.
— "Maybe. But admit it… before the events five years ago, humans respected nothing and no one with powers."
— "Before that," Kae corrected, "no one had powers. At least… officially."
Oris chuckled.
— "Ah, the media."
— "What do you mean?"
Oris shrugged.
— "Most awakened during the events, sure. But me? I already had powers as a kid."
Kae stopped cold.
— "Seriously?"
— "Yeah."
Oris smiled.
— "And Baryon told me to hide them. Otherwise, I'd have had… a lot of problems."
Kae stared at him.
— "…That explains a lot."
— "Like what?"
— "Your behavior."
He narrowed his eyes.
— "And your total lack of fear."
Oris grinned wider.
— "Oh, that's just my natural charm."
— "You already had the black sclera and orange pupils?"
— "Unfortunately, yeah."
— "And no one ever noticed?"
— "Perception‑distortion pendant."
Oris tapped his chest.
— "Gift from Baryon. People saw what they wanted to see."
Kae stayed silent for a moment.
Then asked calmly:
— "Tell me… Oris."
— "Hm?"
— "Are you sure you're human?"
Oris blinked.
— "Well… I've always looked like a human."
— "That's not an answer."
Oris thought for two seconds.
— "…Technically, no."
Kae sighed.
— "Great."
At the back of the hall, Kronn turned in his sleep…
and slammed his head against the wall.
BOOM.
— "…He really is going to fuse with the guild," Kae murmured.
Oris smiled.
— "At least he doesn't ask himself existential questions."
The night stretched on,
laden with flows, secrets…
and latent chaos.