Kalon brazenly strolled out of the building as if he wasnt the same person who had layed unconscious for weeks. He ignored the strange, fearful, and perplexed stares aimed at him and continued walking, undisturbed, toward his destination. After all, why would he worry about the stares and opinions of these insignificant characters? Everyone was a main character in their own story, and Kalon wasn't going to let the thoughts of background characters get to him.
He leisurely made his way to the cadet lunch hall. At the centre of the hall, a hologram displayed the rankings of all cadets based on abilities and various other factors. Surprisingly, Kalon was no longer at the bottom of the list. He was now closer to the middle, positioned next to Dick.
This left Kalon dumbfounded. He wasn't sure why his name had moved so high.
'Is it because of how many prisoners I killed during the training?' he mused. Then another thought surfaced.'How strong is Dick anyway? I don't know anything about his abilities or background, and neither does Amy. Other than the two of us, I doubt there's any cadet who could know what it is.'
After pondering for a while, Kalon decided to leave the matter alone. It wasn't particularly important. He didn't know much about Dick, and digging into it would likely agitate him. Kalon didn't want to lose his first real friend.
Turning away from the hologram, Kalon noticed a group of students staring at him with excitement and adoration—though mostly curiosity. They approached, attempting to encircle him, raising their voices as they fired off questions.
"Hey, how did you defeat that awakened?""Is it true you have a monster inside you?""Are you really from a secret clan or guild?"
After hearing this barrage, Kalon could no longer control his expression. His left eye twitched as he scowled and tried to walk past them. He could feel something within him attempting to force its way out, like a dam on the verge of bursting. Fortunately, Sazzy sensed the abnormality and warned him in time.
As Kalon attempted to leave the hall, he suddenly froze.
Standing by the door was a young girl.
She had long, straight blonde hair flowing all the way to her waist, and deep blue eyes tinged faintly with pink. She wore the standard dark grey cadet uniform, with bandages wrapped around her left arm down to her fingers. The moment the surrounding students noticed her, they began to grumble, murmuring under their breath as they moved away from Kalon and headed in the opposite direction.
Without a doubt, it was Amy.
Seeing her standing alone, Kalon waved, unfazed by the crowd's reaction. Sure, it was more intense than before—but what did that have to do with him?
Walking over, Kalon offered Amy a warm smile and casually asked, "What did I miss?"
Amy seemed off, but Kalon buried the curiosity rising within him and avoided pressing the issue. He didn't want to get involved in something he couldn't handle.
Amy walked alongside Kalon as they headed toward his dorm room. She explained everything that had happened after the incident and what was coming next. There were only eleven days left, and everyone would have to prepare their materials themselves.
After filling him in on the remaining details, she bid him farewell and urged him to go see the combat instructor.
After leaving Kalon's dorm and making sure no one was watching, Amy collapsed into a corner. She folded in on herself and began to cry.
It wasn't that she wasn't happy to see Kalon alive and well—it was his nonchalance that hurt. She couldn't tell whether he was pretending or genuinely didn't know he had nearly died because of her. Watching him act as if nothing had happened filled her with guilt.
'Why didn't he ask why? Why didn't he get angry? Why didn't he complain?'
Those thoughts lingered until she finally stood up and walked away.
'I'll repay him. I'll become so strong that when he's in danger, I'll be able to save him too. Then I'll destroy the entire Lionheart clan.'
After sensing Amy's shadow leave the range of his shadow sense, Kalon let out a long sigh. Though he couldn't see or hear what was happening, he could feel the emotional turbulence within her shadow and understood her pain.
'But if I can't even control myself in front of a crying girl, how will I keep my emotions in check in the future?'
He sighed again, thinking about his not-so-bright future, then quickly stripped off his uniform and took a shower.
After drying off and applying lotion, Kalon dressed in black tracksuit bottoms, a plain black shirt, and a loose, light-coloured hoodie. He left his dorm once more, heading for the combat instructor's office—Gideon.
'I'd prefer to speak with Dr. Obel about his epiphany, but I doubt I'm the first to reach that conclusion. The fact that it's still called a Tower probably means my understanding is incomplete.'
Lost in thought, Kalon entertained various strange ideas until he arrived at a metal door marked STAY OUT. Ignoring the warning, he knocked five times in quick succession.
Gideon opened the door, initially startled to see Kalon, before calming down and smiling.
"Come in. I've been waiting for you for a while."
Kalon took a seat before responding, "Am I still going into the Tower? I've missed so much time."
"Hahahahaha!"
Gideon burst out laughing.
"Kid, why do you think I'm a teacher?"
Kalon was left speechless.'How am I supposed to answer that, you musclebrain? Isn't it because it pays well or something?'
Gideon continued, "One of my abilities allows me to impart knowledge directly into someone's mind. A certain higher-up sees potential in you, and luckily, your strange physique is like water—it can be shaped in many ways."
He grinned.
"What's your weapon of choice? I'll give you the knowledge for both the weapon and the fighting style you wish to adopt."
"Let me think about it."
'This is tough. I don't want to be limited by range, so swords are out. But long-range weapons like bows are useless up close—'
"I've noticed you're good with daggers. Is that your choice?"
'Ahhh… damn it all.'
"No," Kalon said. "I choose a spear. As for the fighting style, I want something wild and unpredictable—something suited to my physique."
"I expected the style," Gideon replied, "but the spear surprises me. I'll give you everything you need. After that, prepare to leave the academy. Go enjoy the last piece of your childhood."
He snickered.
Gideon stepped forward, raised two fingers, and pressed them against Kalon's temple.
Then everything turned white.