Zane was still nursing the sting of his earlier defeat when a senior student handed him a note during his elemental theory class. In neat, elegant writing, it read:
"Come to my office. Now. – Kaela."
With a quiet sigh, Zane excused himself and headed through the winding halls of the academy. His thoughts swirled with possibilities—had she called him to mock him? To scold him for losing so embarrassingly?
He reached her office, a strange chill hanging in the air despite the sunlit hallway. He knocked once.
"Come in," came Kaela's voice, smooth and calm.
He stepped in—and immediately, the door slammed shut behind him with a click that echoed louder than it should have. Kaela raised her hand, and a wave of crimson light surged from her fingertips, wrapping around the room like a living seal. Symbols danced briefly in the air before fading into invisibility.
Zane instinctively reached for his Void energy, but Kaela raised a brow.
"If I wanted you dead, Zane, we wouldn't be talking."
Kaela leaned back in her chair, eyes glowing faintly, and then asked in a tone that was half-icy, half-curious:
"Do you know what you are?"
Zane's breath caught.
"What kind of question is that?"
"A very specific one," Kaela said, standing. "You cracked a mana orb. You wield a sword born of shadow and chaos. You tamed a crown not meant for mortals. So I ask again, Zane... do you know what you are?"
The shadows in the corners of the room deepened. Nyx stirred within Zane, tense and silent.
Zane narrowed his eyes. "I'm still figuring that out."
Kaela smiled—no mockery, no warmth. Just... knowing.
"Good," she said. "Because there are others who already know. And if they find you before you find yourself... you'll be nothing but a weapon to them."
She turned toward her window, voice distant now. "We are not so different, you and I."
Zane stepped forward. "Then what are you?"
Kaela glanced back, one crimson eye shimmering unnaturally.
"An anomaly. Just like you."