Kyle sat cross-legged in the dim glow of the private training chamber, his breathing slow and controlled.
The air hummed with raw mana, swirling around him like an invisible tide. After humiliating Kaelith in the ranking match, he had come straight here—
'Time to break through.'
He exhaled, feeling the pressure in his core build.
A pulse of energy rippled through him, sending a shockwave that rattled the training dummies lining the walls.
His muscles trembled, not from strain, but from the sudden rush of power flooding his veins.
'Finally. Grade 1 Bronze.'
Kyle flexed his fingers, marveling at the difference. It wasn't a dramatic change—no sudden superhuman strength—but his body felt lighter, his mana sharper, like a blade freshly honed.
=======[STATUS]======
[Name]: Kyle Valemont
[Blessing]: Echoes of the Roaming Storm
[Mana Core Rank]: Bronze
[Mana Core Grade]: Grade 1
[Affinity]: Lightning, Wind, Ice, Water
Kyle exhaled, satisfaction curling in his chest.
"All that training with Aurelia was worth it."
His Intelligence stat had climbed—proof of his growing mana control. And his Mana Capacity? Already comparable to a Silver Grade 2. A ridiculous advantage, even for a Bronze ranker.
Kyle had always assumed his accelerated growth came from his blessing.
The Echoes of the Roaming Storm granted him advantages—higher mana reserves, quicker absorption, reflexes so sharp they almost felt like foresight.
But after weeks of relentless training, pushing his body and elements to their limits, the truth was undeniable.
He looked at his Masteries.
=====[MASTERIES]=====
Swordsmanship (Tachi) : Adept - 15%
Lightning Magic: Adept - 98%
Wind Magic: Adept - 70%
Ice Magic: Adept - 57%
Water Magic: Adept - 19%
=====================
Switching from Jian to Tachi had reset his sword mastery, forcing him to rebuild from Apprentice 0%.
But it hadn't taken long. The moment he'd gripped the curved blade, it had felt right—like his body already knew the motions.
Now, at Adept 15%, his strikes were sharper, his footwork seamless.
"Still a long way to go, though."
The real challenge was his elemental masteries.
Reaching Adept had been hard enough. Progressing further? A grind.
Kyle stretched, rolling his shoulders.
"Time to test the new limits."
He stood, summoning a crackling bolt of lightning in one palm, a swirling gust of wind in the other. The energy hummed, obedient, responsive in a way it hadn't been before.
A smirk tugged at his lips.
The alchemy lab smelled of burnt sulfur and crushed herbs, the air thick with tension.
At the front of the class, Professor Veylan Mourncrest loomed over a trembling first-year—Emily Williams, a petite girl with messy purple hair and round glasses that kept slipping down her nose.
"What did I JUST say about the order of ingredients?!" Veylan's voice cracked like a whip, his knuckles whitening around the edge of her workstation.
Emily flinched, her fingers still sticky from the half-mixed solution. "I-I thought if we added the moonstone dust first—"
"You thought?!" Veylan's face twisted, a vein bulging at his temple. "This isn't some backwater village brewstand! One misstep and this entire lab could explode!"
The class had gone dead silent.
A month ago, this would've been unthinkable. Professor Veylan had been patient, almost kind—the sort of teacher who would stay late to help struggling students. But something had changed.
Now, his temper was a lit fuse.
From the back of the lab, Kyle Valemont kept his head down, his stylus scratching meaningless notes onto his mana tab.
No one noticed the way his shoulders shook—not from fear, but from the effort of suppressing a smirk.
Emily's eyes welled up. "I'm sorry, Professor, I just—"
"Save your excuses!" Veylan snatched the failed potion vial from her desk, holding it up like evidence. "This is exactly why commoners shouldn't—"
A voice cut through the room.
"Actually," Kyle said, raising his hand with feigned innocence, "the Alchemy Association Journal says moonstone can go first if you adjust the temperature. Page forty-two."
Veylan's head snapped toward him.
"Are you correcting me, Valemont?"
Kyle blinked. "Just quoting published research, Sir."
The professor's face darkened. "That research is outdated."
"Oh." Kyle tilted his head. "So… you did know about it?"
The implication hung in the air: 'Then why didn't you teach it properly?'
Veylan's fingers twitched.
Veylan pointed to the door, his voice trembling with barely contained rage.
Emily scrambled to gather her things, tears streaking her glasses.
Kyle stood slowly, deliberately—making sure the entire class saw his calm versus Veylan's meltdown.
As he passed the professor, he murmured just loud enough for him to hear.
"No wonder the Alchemy Association demoted you."
The door slammed shut behind them with a finality that made Emily flinch.
She stood trembling in the hallway, her purple bangs sticking to tear streaked cheeks as she adjusted her crooked glasses.
"Th-thanks" she hiccuped, clutching her notes to her chest. "But why did you... I mean, you didn't have to..."
Kyle studied her for a moment, the way her fingers shook, how she kept biting her already raw lower lip.
He reached into his pocket and produced a clean handkerchief.
"You looked like you needed an out" he said simply.
Emily took it with both hands, dabbing at her red-rimmed eyes.
"He's been getting worse every week." Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"I think... I think something's wrong with him."
Kyle's expression remained neutral, but something flickered in his eyes.
"Go to the infirmary" he said, nodding toward the east wing.
"Tell Nurse Olivia you inhaled sulfur fumes. That'll explain the red eyes."
"But I didn't actually-"
"Emily." Kyle met her gaze squarely. "Just go. Take the rest of the day."
She sniffled, then gave a small, grateful nod. As she turned to leave, she hesitated.
"You are... different than the others in our class. Nicer."
Kyle almost laughed at that. If only she knew.
"Get some rest," he said instead.
Watching her retreating form, Kyle leaned against the cold stone wall and exhaled slowly, rolling the tension from his shoulders.
The muffled sound of Veylan's continued ranting seeped through the door - unhinged, erratic.
A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he pushed off the wall and walked away, hands in pockets.
'Everything is just as I expected.'
The pieces were moving perfectly.
Now he just had to wait for the dominoes to fall.