They stopped testing him alone.
The door opened without warning, and this time, Ethan sensed more than one presence beyond it. Not guards. Not observers.
Users.
Real ones.
He stood before they entered.
Three figures stepped inside.
All older.
All stable.
Their Ten was active without effort. Unlike the newly awakened, their aura did not flicker. It did not leak. It existed as naturally as breath.
They knew what they were.
The man entered last.
"They will not attack you," he said.
Not reassurance.
Instruction.
"They will resist you."
The door closed.
Locked.
Ethan did not release Ren immediately.
He observed them.
The first stood still, watching him with quiet caution.
The second shifted slightly, adjusting his footing—ready.
The third remained relaxed, confident in his stability.
None spoke.
None needed to.
Ethan activated Ren.
His aura expanded outward, calm and precise.
Silent Authority formed instantly—not visible, not tangible, but present.
Defined.
He spoke.
"Step back."
The first user did not move.
His Ten held firm.
His will held stronger.
Resistance.
Expected.
The second user hesitated.
Only slightly.
His muscles reacted before his mind corrected them.
A flaw.
A moment.
The third did not move at all.
His control was superior.
Ethan observed carefully.
Silent Authority did not control equally.
It interacted with structure.
Confidence.
Intent.
Stability.
He refined his focus.
Not stronger.
Clearer.
He spoke again.
"Step back."
This time, the second user obeyed.
One step.
Small.
But real.
The first user's body shifted—not backward, but uncertain.
His balance betrayed him.
The third user narrowed his eyes.
He felt it.
Not force.
Influence.
The rule existed.
And it affected him.
Not enough to control him.
But enough to touch him.
Ethan ended Ren.
His aura returned to Ten.
Contained.
The room fell silent.
The man stepped forward.
"You are expanding," he said.
Not praise.
Measurement.
"Authority grows with clarity."
He paused.
"You are not strengthening your aura."
He looked directly at Ethan.
"You are strengthening your definition."
The distinction mattered.
Strength could be resisted.
Definition reshaped resistance.
The man turned toward the others.
"Leave."
They obeyed immediately.
No hesitation.
No resistance.
Because his authority—
Was absolute.
The door closed again.
The man faced Ethan one last time.
"Silent Authority will never dominate the strongest."
He paused.
"But it does not need to."
He stepped closer.
"All structure contains weakness."
A final pause.
"Your task is to define where."
Then he left.
Ethan remained alone.
His aura rested beneath his skin, quiet and perfect.
Silent Authority had grown.
Not louder.
Not stronger.
Clearer.
And clarity—
Was the beginning of inevitability.