Kael left the dormitory earlier than usual, taking advantage of the quiet hour before the academy grounds filled with noise. The air was still cool, and the stone paths carried the faint scent of damp morning dew, a calm that felt increasingly rare now that attention had begun to follow him wherever he went.
Seraphine's words from the previous day lingered in his thoughts as he crossed the courtyard.
The moment you stop being predictable, people decide whether you are useful or dangerous.
For most of his life, he had been easy to categorize. Mana-less, harmless, forgettable. The label had stung, but it had also offered a kind of protection, because people rarely bothered to watch closely what they had already dismissed. That quiet safety was beginning to erode, replaced by a different kind of scrutiny that made every action feel heavier.
If he wanted to keep control of the situation, he would need to learn control in another sense as well — not only over his ability, but over how much of it others were allowed to see.
The practical hall stood adjacent to the lecture wing, its wide stone floor reinforced with layered rune arrays designed to contain unstable magic. A faint hum lingered beneath the air, the building's protective enchantments always active, subtle but constant.
Darian waved him over with familiar ease, as though they had known each other for far longer than a day. Lyra arrived soon after, already scanning the etched floor patterns with focused intensity, while Seraphine joined them with the same composed presence she carried everywhere.
Instructor Marrow entered shortly afterward, and the room's conversations dimmed without needing to be silenced.
"Containment teams," he said, his voice even and unhurried. "Today you will construct a three-layer barrier and maintain it under pressure. You are not to force stability through excess output. If your structure collapses inward, you begin again. If it bursts outward, you will be reminded that this hall is not indestructible."
A few students straightened at that.
"Begin."
Their team moved to the assigned platform, where three concentric rings formed the base of the barrier structure. Lyra traced the array with her gaze, quietly identifying the rune functions, while Darian rolled his shoulders as though preparing for physical exertion.
The roles were decided quickly. Darian took the outer ring to provide reinforcement, Lyra managed the middle layer's pressure distribution, and Seraphine anchored the core with steady precision. When their attention turned to Kael, he simply said he would observe and call out shifts, a role that drew no objections.
Mana flowed into the array, and the barrier rose gradually, a translucent dome taking shape above the platform. To most observers, it was simply a layered field of light, but as Kael let Law Observation settle into place, the formation unfolded into something far more intricate. He could see the lattice beneath the surface, tension lines weaving through it like the framework of a structure under load.
When Marrow activated the pressure cycle, the barrier flexed under the first pulse, the stress traveling through the outer framework. Darian reinforced instinctively, thickening the structure, but the added rigidity caused strain to gather unevenly.
"There," Kael said quietly, indicating the area before the imbalance could worsen. "Let it spread rather than harden."
Darian adjusted his flow, easing the reinforcement into a smoother curve, and the tension redistributed before it could sharpen into a tear. Lyra watched the shift closely, her surprise visible but secondary to maintaining the formation.
The next pulse struck from a different angle, and this time the dispersion layer lagged slightly, sending stress toward the core.
"Middle ring," Kael said. "Let the pressure travel forward, not sideways."
Lyra corrected immediately, smoothing the distribution, while Seraphine maintained the anchor with calm precision. The structure held, and the group's movements began to align more naturally, each adjustment feeding into the next without hesitation.
As the cycles continued, Kael narrowed his focus to the most dangerous tension lines, aware of the growing strain behind his eyes. Instead of trying to see everything, he tracked only the points where collapse would begin, guiding the others with small corrections that kept the formation stable.
When the pressure increased sharply near the end of the exercise, the barrier bowed inward, and Darian's instinct to push back threatened to worsen the strain.
"Guide it downward," Kael said, keeping his voice steady. "Let the pressure settle."
Darian followed the instruction, shifting his reinforcement into a broader base, which allowed Lyra's dispersion pattern to absorb the excess stress. Seraphine tightened the core anchor at the same moment, and the structure steadied, its surface vibrating but intact.
They reached one hundred heartbeats, and the pressure cycles ceased.
The dome faded, leaving only the faint warmth of the rune platform beneath them. Darian exhaled, the tension leaving his shoulders, while Lyra looked at Kael with open curiosity that she did not attempt to hide.
"You weren't guessing," she said quietly. "You were reading the structure."
"I was watching," Kael replied, which was answer enough for now.
Seraphine said nothing, but the look she gave him suggested she had noticed more than she intended to comment on. Across the hall, Marrow's attention lingered briefly before he turned to another team, his expression thoughtful rather than suspicious.
As they left the platform, Darian lowered his voice just enough to keep the conversation contained. He mentioned instinct, Lyra's expression sharpened with interest, and Kael chose not to respond, letting the moment pass without offering more than necessary.
They stepped back into the courtyard together, and Kael felt the subtle shift in the academy's atmosphere once again. Students glanced their way, not openly staring, but noticing enough to remember.
He kept his expression calm, even as the ache behind his eyes pulsed steadily, a reminder that every advantage came with a cost.
Seeing the structure of magic had begun to change his place in the world, and whether that change would become protection or danger was a question he could not yet answer.