So where the hell was she?
"Hey Aziel, have you seen Nyx?" Alden couldn’t hold his curiosity.
Aziel hesitated slightly.
"She has been acting weird recently." He replied after a pause. "She vanished after you did—then showed up just for qualifiers, won, and disappeared again."
He continued.
"I saw her today... just a few minutes before you arrived in the lobby but she ignored us..." A flicker of concern flashed across his face.
Aziel didn’t show it, but he cared more than most about his friends.
Alden said. "She was probably in a hurry."
"Hmm, maybe." Aziel nodded.
Before he could say anything more, an authoritative voice rang across the chambers.
"Now that everyone is gathered, I will begin the briefing."
It was Cipheria—or Cipher, to be more precise—who spoke.
She stepped forward, her long cloak trailing behind her. Not a strand of her purple hair was out of place.
Perfect. Impossibly so.
The curve of her figure was impossible to ignore—confident, composed and carried with the kind of grace that drew attention without asking for it.
Even the rise and fall of her chest with each step seed effortless... like the rest of her.
And that smile? You’d never guess she was anything more than a teacher.
"First of all," Cipheria began, her voice smooth and clear, carrying easily across the chamber, "I’d like to congratulate each of you for being selected to represent Astralis Academy—not just in front of your peers... but in front of the entire world."
Alden narrowed his eyes.
Damn, her acting is so flawless.
If he didn’t already know the truth, he would’ve believed it too. Her tone. Her expression. Her presence. Everything about her scread "dedicated professor"—not a covert agent.
Cipher continued, hands clasped behind her back as she walked slowly across the front of the hall.
"The Inter-Academy Exchange will be hosted on a fully secured artificial island located in a neutral zone, outside any kingdom or racial domain."
She paused, letting the silence stretch just long enough to demand attention.
"This isn’t just another tournant. This is a showcase of strength and unity. Elves, Dwarves, Beastkin, and Humans alike have all sent their brightest students."
Her gaze swept over the crowd calmly.
"You are not simply representing Astralis anymore. You’re representing humanity."
A subtle ripple of nervousness went through the room.
"The competition will last for two weeks. Accommodations have been arranged on the island. You’ll live there, train there and fight there. Each match, each ranking, will be broadcast across major realms and factions."
She finally stopped pacing.
"This is not just a battle of power... it’s a stage of politics. Make no mistake—how you carry yourselves out there will shape how humanity is perceived on the global stage."
"Now if everyone is ready, enter the portal one by one and follow the instructions of your seniors."
With those words, Cipher walked away, her expression as unreadable as always.
As the crowd began to move toward the glowing portal, Alden waited for a mont, his eyes scanning the room one last ti.
He could see excitent, nervousness and even fear across the faces of students.
Still, a sliver of unease twisted in his gut.
Sothing wasn’t quite right.
He didn’t know why but he felt sothing was definitely going to happen during inter-academy.
And worst of all, he had no idea of what would happen.
There was no such thing in the novel.
There was an inter-academy but it only happened in the second year.
Alden exhaled slowly, his crimson eyes narrowing.
The script was long since broken. The pieces were shifting.
And if the story was no longer bound by the book...
Then neither was he.
No matter what’s waiting, I’ll write my own damn Chapter.
With those words, he stepped forward, toward the portal.
****
anwhile, on the artificial island, within a luxurious cafe, a boy and a girl sat calmly.
The girl had fiery red hair and deep orange eyes.
If Alden had been here and the girl had been wearing the mask, he would have imdiately recognised her as Skullcrusher—the girl who he had defeated in a match in black market fighting ring.
Her body radiated Interdiate Adept Rank aura.
But the boy in front of her was even stronger.
His black hair paired with his deep violet eyes gave him a very tired and sickly look but his strength told another story completely.
He was at Interdiate Expert Rank.
An unprecedented feat for soone so young.
He was one of the anomalies born in this world who had awakened long before turning seventeen.
The boy and girl both wore an academy uniform with a badge of a tree tearing through the horizon.
They were one of the representatives of rank two academy of human empire.
The Horizon Academy.
"Hey, Ryou, do you think he will be here?" The girl asked in quiet excitent.
The boy—Ryou, looked at her calmly.
"Yes, Young Miss. Anna, according to the intel... he should be here." His voice was respectful.
Even if his strength was greater than Anna, he was but a re shadow of her whose job was to listen to every order of her.
"Do you think I can defeat him this ti?" Anna asked again in anticipation.
"You will," he said without flinching. "I’m certain of it."
He never felt emotions in his life... he just carried out his duty...
... and yet, every ti he heard his Young Miss ntion the boy she had lost to... for so reason his chest ached.
He didn’t know why but he felt annoyed by the boy, who he hadn’t even t yet.
The young miss had even asked her grandfather to admit her into Astralis Academy.
But even her grandfather was rejected by the arrogant principal of Astralis.
So, she had no choice but to take admission in Horizon academy, hoping to et the boy during so inter-academy.
What does she see in him?
He asked himself and yet he never understood the answer.
Will I see what Young Miss likes so much about him, if I defeat him?
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