The morning light filtering through the window of The Dead Man's Rest was soft, contrasting with the violence of the previous night.
Kaelen sat by the bed, peeling an apple. His movements were slow, deliberate.
Lyra sat up, wrapped in a blanket. She looked healthy—her cheeks were pink, her breathing steady. But her eyes were fixed on Kaelen's hair.
It was no longer the deep raven black she remembered. It was snow-white, with only faint streaks of black remaining near the roots.
"Your hair..." Lyra reached out, her fingers trembling as she touched a white lock. "It's the color of ash. You burned your life force for me, didn't you?"
Kaelen paused. He handed her a slice of apple.
"It's just a color, Mom. The alchemists say white hair is fashionable in the Capital this year."
Lyra didn't smile. She was a cultivator once. She knew the price of defying death. She grabbed his hand, squeezing it tight.
"I am alive," she whispered fiercely. "But I will not be a burden anymore. If I am to stay by your side, I must recover my cultivation. I will not let my son wither away protecting me."
Kaelen looked at her. He saw the fire in her eyes. It was the same fire he had.
"You won't have to protect yourself," Kaelen said. "Because we are going to the safest—and most dangerous—place in the world."
"Where?"
"The Imperial Capital. Aethelgard."
...
The Common Room.
Bo and Magnus were waiting downstairs. Bo was trying to teach Magnus how to hold a teacup.
"No, pinky out! Like a gentleman!" Bo scolded.
Magnus held the tiny porcelain cup with two massive fingers. CRACK. The cup turned to dust.
"Tea... weak," Magnus grunted. "Cup... weak."
Kaelen walked down the stairs. The room went silent. The innkeeper and the few pirates present lowered their heads. They knew who he was. The Asura. The man who ate a Demon.
"Pack your bags," Kaelen ordered. "We are leaving the Isles."
"Leaving?" Bo jumped up. "But Boss, we own this place! Seraphina is practically your girlfriend! We could live like kings!"
"We are not kings here, Bo. We are targets," Kaelen sat down. "I sifted through the Pirate King's memories before I... digested him."
Kaelen lowered his voice.
"The Eclipse isn't just a criminal organization. They are backed by the Empire. The Pirate King was receiving funding from someone high up in the Imperial Academy."
"The Academy?" Bo gasped. "That place is for nobles and geniuses! They eat street rats like us for breakfast!"
"Exactly," Kaelen smiled, a cold, calculating glint in his eyes. "That's why we are going to join them."
"Join them?!" Bo shrieked. "I can't read! Magnus can't fit through the door! And you... you look like a walking murder suspect!"
"We need cover," Kaelen explained. "The Eclipse is looking for 'Asura' in the lawless zones. They won't look for three students in the Capital."
"And my mother?" Kaelen looked upstairs. "The Capital has the best healers and the strongest barriers. I will buy a house there. She will be safe."
Magnus stood up. "School... sounds... quiet. I like quiet."
"See?" Kaelen patted Magnus's arm. "Magnus is in. Bo, you will be our 'Scholar'."
"Scholar?!" Bo looked horrified. "I stole a book once! I didn't read it!"
...
The Pier.
Seraphina stood by the gangplank of a sleek, unmarked merchant ship. The Black Pearl.
She handed Kaelen a scroll.
"These are forged identities," Seraphina said, her voice devoid of its usual playfulness. "High-quality. They will pass the City Gates."
She looked at Kaelen's white hair.
"You changed," she murmured. "You look less like a pirate and more like a... fallen angel."
"I am neither," Kaelen took the scroll. "I am just a traveler."
"Will you come back?" Seraphina asked. There was a vulnerability in her eyes that she rarely showed.
"If the world burns," Kaelen looked at the chaotic islands behind him, "I might need a place to light a fire."
Seraphina smirked. "The Shattered Isles will always welcome the Asura. Go, break some hearts in the Capital."
She leaned in and whispered in his ear.
"And kill Duke Venn. He was my father's contact in the Eclipse."
Kaelen nodded. "Consider him dead."
He boarded the ship. Lyra, Bo, and Magnus followed.
As the ship sailed away, leaving the smog and ash behind, the sea turned from black to a brilliant, deep blue.
...
Three Days Later. The Capital Gates.
Aethelgard was magnificent.
It was a city built of white marble and gold, floating on a massive lake. Giant waterfalls cascaded from the city edges into the abyss below. Wyverns flew in the sky, carrying knights in shining armor.
It was the peak of civilization. And the heart of corruption.
The Black Pearl docked at the merchant district.
"Wow..." Bo's jaw dropped. "Look at the gold on that statue! I want to scrape it off!"
"Hands in pockets, Bo," Kaelen warned. "We are here to study, not steal. Yet."
They walked to the massive City Gate. A line of carriages stretched for miles.
Kaelen walked to the pedestrian lane. He wore a simple scholar's robe (which looked strange with his white hair). Magnus wore a massive cloak to hide his grey skin. Bo wore glasses (stolen) to look smart.
"Papers," the Gate Guard grunted, looking bored.
Kaelen handed over the scrolls Seraphina gave them.
The Guard opened them.
"Name: Kael," the Guard read. "Origin: North Rim Village. Purpose: Academy Entrance Exam."
The Guard looked at Kaelen, then at the massive hooded figure of Magnus.
"And him?"
"My... cousin," Kaelen lied smoothly. "He ate too much growing up."
The Guard rolled his eyes. "Country bumpkins. Listen, kid. The Entrance Exam is brutal this year. The Crown Prince himself is watching. Don't cry when you get rejected."
"I'll try to hold back my tears," Kaelen said politely.
Stamp.
"Welcome to Aethelgard. Next!"
They walked through the gates.
The noise of the Capital hit them. Merchants shouting, carriages clattering, magic humming in the air.
"First step," Kaelen said, looking at a map. "We need a house. Somewhere quiet."
They found a villa in the District of Old Willows. It was expensive, but Kaelen still had half the Pirate King's treasury in his spatial ring. He paid upfront, shocking the real estate agent.
Once Lyra was settled in a room with a garden view, Kaelen gathered his team in the living room.
"Tomorrow is the Exam," Kaelen said. "There are three trials. Spirit Power, Written Test, and Combat."
"Written Test?" Bo slumped on the floor. "I'm dead. I'm officially dead."
"I will help you cheat," Kaelen said. "But for the Combat... we need to hold back."
"Hold back?" Magnus asked.
"Yes," Kaelen's eyes narrowed. "If we show our full power, the Eclipse will notice. We need to be strong enough to pass, but weak enough to be ignored. We need to be Class B students."
"I can do Class B!" Bo cheered. "I love being average!"
"But," Kaelen looked out the window at the towering spire of the Imperial Academy in the distance.
"There is one person we need to avoid. General Thorne. He is the Head of Security at the Academy."
"Why?"
"Because," Kaelen touched the scar on his chest (from his previous life). "In my past life... he was the one who taught me how to use a sword. And he has eyes that can see through lies."
A shiver ran down the room.
The Emperor's old teacher.
If anyone could recognize Valerius inside Kaelen, it was him.
"This is going to be fun," Kaelen smiled, though his hand gripped his sword hilt tightly.
The outlaw days were over. The days of politics, school rivalries, and secret assassinations had begun.
Author Note: "If you like the story, please vote with Power Stones! It helps me write faster."