The following days were a blur of forbidden training, hidden lessons, and exhaustion. Every night, I met Kieran in the secret chamber beneath the Academy, learning how to harness Divin Forces, a power that felt entirely different from mana.
At first, my progress was frustratingly slow. Unlike mana, which required cultivation and inner control, Divin Forces required an entirely different way of thinking—a mindset that defied logic.
"You're trying to control it," Kieran had said during one of our sessions. "But Divin Force isn't about control. It's about understanding."
By the third night, I finally managed a small success—manipulating the air around my fingertips just enough to create a distortion, like ripples in water.
It wasn't much. But it was a start.
And I needed every advantage I could get—because trouble was already brewing within the Academy.
A Growing Unease
The Grand Novice Tournament had barely ended, but something about the Academy felt… off.
The atmosphere in the halls had changed.
Students whispered in hushed tones. Instructors watched closely, more suspicious than before. The higher-ranking scholars had called meetings behind closed doors, and the air buzzed with unspoken tension.
Even Elara had noticed it.
"They're talking about you," she muttered one morning as we walked through the courtyard.
I raised an eyebrow. "Me?"
She nodded, lowering her voice. "After what happened in the tournament—especially with Kieran—people started asking questions. And now?" She glanced around warily. "Some of the instructors are getting suspicious."
I frowned. "Suspicious of what?"
She hesitated. "I don't know. But I heard a few whispering about 'anomalies in mana readings.'"
My stomach tightened. Was it because of my training with Divin Forces?
If they were monitoring mana fluctuations in the Academy, it was possible they had noticed something… wrong.
An Unwanted Interrogation
I wasn't the only one under scrutiny.
The day after Elara's warning, Kieran was summoned to the High Scholar's chamber.
I didn't see him for nearly an entire day.
When he returned that night, his usual smirk was absent, replaced by something else—calculated wariness.
"They're watching us," he muttered, leaning against the stone wall of the secret chamber.
I crossed my arms. "What did they ask you?"
"They were… careful," he said. "They didn't accuse me of anything outright. But they were interested in my 'unusual abilities.'"
I tensed. "They suspect you used something other than mana in the tournament."
Kieran smirked. "Of course they do. And they'd be right."
I clenched my jaw. "So what now?"
Kieran exhaled. "For now? We act normal. Keep our training hidden. But… there's something else."
His golden eyes darkened.
"They've started investigating the Sealed Archives."
My heart skipped a beat.
That was where I found the book on the Forsaken.
If the instructors were searching there, it meant they were actively trying to piece something together.
And if they found out what I had taken…
I forced myself to breathe slowly. "We need to be careful."
Kieran nodded. "More than that. We need to be ahead of them."
The First Real Test
Our next training session was different.
Instead of practicing small distortions in reality, Kieran had me attempt a more advanced technique—one that could be used in actual combat.
It was called the Displacement Step.
"Mana enhances movement," Kieran explained. "But Divin Force manipulates the space between movements.""Meaning?" I asked.He smirked. "It means instead of moving faster, you move… differently."
The goal was to instantly shift position without needing to physically move, creating an effect that looked like teleportation—but wasn't.
At first, I failed.
Repeatedly.
Every time I tried, I either miscalculated the distance and fell forward awkwardly or nearly dislocated my shoulder from twisting space incorrectly.
By the fifth attempt, I was covered in bruises and swearing under my breath.
Kieran snickered. "Elegant."
I shot him a glare. "Why don't you do it then?"
He smirked, then vanished—reappearing behind me in an instant.
I cursed. "That's cheating."
"That's practice."
I rolled my shoulders, forcing myself to focus.
Feel the shift. Don't control it. Let it happen.
I closed my eyes, feeling the space around me… the tiny distortions in reality.
Then—
I stepped forward—
And the world blurred.
For a split second, my body shifted without moving.
When I stopped, I was five feet ahead of where I had been standing.
It wasn't perfect. But it was progress.
And from the look in Kieran's eyes…
He was impressed.
The Academy's Watchful Eyes
The next morning, I kept my head low, focusing on my usual routine.
But something felt wrong.
As I walked through the library, I felt the weight of a gaze on me—someone watching from the shadows.
At first, I ignored it.
Until I rounded a corner and nearly ran into someone.
A tall figure in silver robes stood in front of me—an Academy Scholar.
I tensed. "Can I help you?"
The scholar smiled thinly. "You're Sylas, correct?"
I nodded slowly. "Yes."
He studied me, his eyes sharp. "We've been reviewing records of the recent tournament. You had quite the… unusual performance."
I kept my expression neutral. "I trained hard for it."
"Indeed," he said smoothly. "But what interests us most is your match against Kieran Valen."
My pulse quickened, but I kept my face calm. "What about it?"
The scholar smiled, but there was no warmth in it.
"Tell me, Sylas. Have you ever encountered… unusual energy sources?"
My stomach twisted.
I knew exactly what he was asking.
But I couldn't let them know I had already begun unlocking something forbidden.
I forced a chuckle. "I don't know what you mean. I just use mana like everyone else."
The scholar's gaze lingered on me for a moment too long.
Then he smiled again.
"Of course. Forgive me for the strange question."
He turned and walked away, but I didn't miss the way his eyes flickered back toward me one last time.
They knew.
They didn't have proof—not yet—but they knew something was wrong.
And if they kept digging, it was only a matter of time before they found the truth.
An Inevitable Confrontation
That night, I met Kieran in the training chamber.
"They questioned me today," I muttered.
Kieran exhaled sharply. "Same here."
I clenched my fists. "They know something's off. It won't be long before they start monitoring us more closely."
Kieran smirked. "Then we just have to stay ahead of them."
I narrowed my eyes. "How?"
He turned, reaching for a scroll on the shelf.
"By leaving the Academy walls."
I frowned. "You mean—?"
Kieran's smirk widened.
"The only way to get real answers is to go where no one else dares. The Ruins of the Old World."
I swallowed hard.
If we did this, there was no turning back.
But something inside me already knew—
This was the next step.
And I was ready to take it.