Chrono finally stepped out of the shower.
The cold water had helped clear his mind a little.
He grabbed a towel and loosely wrapped it around his waist before walking back into his room.
Drops of water still ran down his hair as he ran a hand through it.
Alright… now I can finally—
Chrono froze.
Someone was sitting on his bed.
A woman with long black hair and sharp purple eyes.
She wore a simple casual outfit, one leg crossed over the other as she sat calmly on the edge of the bed.
But her eyes…
Her eyes were anything but calm.
They were staring directly at him.
Cold.
Sharp.
And very, very angry.
Chrono blinked.
"…Yelena?"
The woman said nothing.
This was Yelena Zephyr.
Chrono's older sister.
Her purple eyes slowly scanned him from head to toe.
Specifically—
The fact that he was standing there wearing nothing but a shower towel.
Chrono's brain froze for half a second.
Then reality hit him.
"…Ah."
A faint blush appeared on his face.
Yelena's eye twitched.
"Chrono."
Her voice was calm.
Too calm.
"You said you would come see me yesterday."
Chrono scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Right… about that…"
Yelena stood up slowly.
The air in the room immediately felt heavier.
Chrono sighed.
"…Wait."
He gestured toward the wardrobe.
"Let me change first."
Yelena's eyes narrowed slightly.
Chrono walked past her toward the closet.
As he did—
He could feel her gaze following him.
…Yeah she's definitely pissed.
Behind him, Yelena crossed her arms.
Her voice came again.
Cold.
"You have exactly two minutes to explain yourself."
Chrono opened the closet and grabbed his uniform.
"…Right."
This is going to be troublesome.
Chrono quickly changed into a loose shirt and black pants before walking back into the room.
Yelena was still standing near the bed, her arms crossed.
Her purple eyes immediately locked onto him the moment he returned.
"…Well?" she said flatly.
Chrono rubbed the back of his neck.
"I was training."
Yelena's brows narrowed slightly.
"Training?"
Chrono nodded.
"I spent most of yesterday in the training halls."
For a moment she didn't respond.
The anger in her expression slowly faded.
"…You were training the whole time?"
"Yeah."
Chrono shrugged lightly.
"I forgot about the meeting."
A quiet sigh escaped Yelena.
Her shoulders relaxed slightly.
"…Idiot."
The word didn't carry the same anger as before.
Instead, there was a faint hint of concern behind it.
She looked at him carefully for a moment.
"You look tired."
Chrono blinked.
"I just finished a shower."
Yelena stared at him for another second before shaking her head.
"…You really haven't changed."
Then she suddenly reached into a small bag beside her.
Chrono tilted his head.
"…What are you doing?"
Without answering, Yelena began placing things on the bed.
A packet of chips.
Another one.
Then a couple of canned drinks.
Chrono stared at the growing pile.
"…Why do you have snacks in my room?"
Yelena sat down on the bed again and casually opened one of the chip packets.
"Because I was waiting."
She tossed a packet toward him.
Chrono caught it automatically.
"…You were waiting that long?"
Yelena took a sip from one of the drinks before replying.
"Yes."
Chrono stared at the packet in his hand.
For someone who had looked ready to murder him five minutes ago…
She now looked surprisingly relaxed.
Yelena glanced at him again.
"Are you just going to stand there?"
Chrono sighed quietly before sitting on the bed across from her.
"…You broke into my room."
Yelena crunched on a chip.
"You forgot our meeting."
"…Fair enough."
For a moment the room was quiet.
Just the sound of chips being opened and cans popping.
After everything that had happened today…
The calm felt strangely nice.
Chrono leaned back slightly.
…Not bad.
The two sat on the bed, casually eating snacks as they talked.
Most of the conversation was simple.
Yelena talked about the academy.
Chrono talked about settling into the dorms.
But throughout the conversation, a question kept lingering in Chrono's mind.
Why…
Why did Ragnar Zephyr adopt us?
The thought had been bothering him for a while now.
Ragnar Zephyr wasn't the type of man to casually take in children.
Someone like the Sword King would never do something without a reason.
Chrono glanced at Yelena for a moment.
She looked completely relaxed as she sipped from her drink.
If anyone knows… it would be her.
But the thought quickly faded.
No.
Asking something like that would be suspicious.
After all—
The real Chrono should already know the answer.
Chrono quietly abandoned the idea.
"…Um."
Yelena looked at him.
"Yes?"
Chrono hesitated slightly before speaking.
"Sister."
"Yeah?"
"You're the rank one of the fourth years, right?"
Yelena shrugged casually.
"Yeah."
She took another chip.
"And the student council president."
Chrono nodded slowly.
So it's true.
A thought suddenly formed in his mind.
If I trained with her…
That would be far more effective than training alone.
Not only was Yelena extremely strong—
But she also had access to better facilities inside the academy.
Chrono looked at her again.
"…Can you train me?"
Yelena blinked once.
Then her purple eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Huh?"
Chrono spoke calmly.
"You're strong."
"So I figured training with you would be helpful."
Yelena stared at him silently for a few seconds.
Then—
A small smirk appeared on her face.
"Oh?"
She leaned back slightly.
"The little brother who ignored me for two days…"
"…now wants training?"
Chrono sighed.
"…Don't start."
Yelena chuckled softly.
But there was a faint spark of interest in her eyes now.
"Alright."
She stood up and stretched slightly.
"If you want training…"
Her purple eyes locked onto him.
"Then we start tomorrow morning."
Chrono nodded.
"…Sounds good."
Yelena smiled faintly.
But inside her mind, a completely different thought appeared.
Since when did Chrono start asking to train?
Something about him felt slightly different.
But she couldn't quite figure out what.
___
The next morning arrived quickly.
Chrono woke up earlier than usual.
Today there were no academic classes, which meant most students would spend their time training.
After getting dressed in simple training clothes, Chrono left the dormitory and headed toward the academy's training facilities.
The morning air was still cool as he walked through the quiet pathways of Nexus Academy.
A few cadets were already heading toward the training halls.
Most of them carried swords, spears, or staffs.
Chrono soon arrived at one of the large training rooms provided by the academy.
He pushed the door open.
The moment he stepped inside—
CRACKLE.
A faint sound of electricity echoed through the room.
Chrono looked up.
Standing in the middle of the training hall was Yelena.
She held a wooden practice sword loosely in one hand.
Small sparks of lightning danced across the blade, flickering like restless serpents.
Her long black hair swayed slightly as she turned toward him.
A confident grin appeared on her face.
"You're late."
Chrono glanced at the wall clock.
"I'm three minutes early."
"Same thing."
Yelena rolled her shoulders before pointing the wooden sword toward him.
"Come on."
"Let's begin."
Chrono stared at the faint lightning dancing around the sword.
"…You're using lightning mana on a wooden sword."
Yelena shrugged.
"It's more fun that way."
Chrono sighed deeply as he stepped forward and picked up another practice sword from the rack.
…This was a bad idea.
Yelena's grin widened slightly.
"Don't worry."
"I'll go easy on you."
Chrono looked at her.
Somehow that made him feel even worse.
The two moved to the center of the training hall.
Chrono held the wooden sword in a standard stance while Yelena watched him carefully.
Her playful grin from earlier faded slightly.
Now her eyes were sharper.
Observant.
She spun the wooden sword in her hand once before stopping.
"We'll start simple," she said.
"No mana. No abilities."
Chrono nodded.
"Just sword basics."
Yelena stepped forward and raised her blade.
"I'll limit myself to your level."
Chrono wasn't sure whether that was reassuring or insulting.
"…Alright."
The spar began.
Yelena made the first move.
Not fast.
Not aggressive.
Just a simple forward step and a diagonal strike.
Chrono raised his sword.
CLACK.
The wooden blades collided.
Yelena immediately shifted her wrist, sliding her blade down Chrono's sword before striking again.
CLACK.
Chrono barely managed to block the second hit.
She stepped back slightly.
"Your stance is decent," she said casually.
"But your balance is off."
Before Chrono could respond—
She stepped in again.
Three quick strikes.
Left.
Right.
Down.
CLACK. CLACK. CLACK.
Chrono managed to block two of them.
The third tapped his shoulder.
Yelena lowered her sword.
"Dead."
Chrono sighed.
"…Great start."
Yelena chuckled.
"Relax. This is just a check."
She began circling him slowly.
"I want to see how much you actually understand about the sword."
Chrono adjusted his grip.
"Then come again."
Yelena smiled faintly.
This time she attacked faster.
Chrono's eyes sharpened.
The moment her sword moved—
Something shifted in his mind.
The world slowed slightly.
Time Perception.
He could see the movement.
The angle.
The direction.
Chrono stepped aside.
CLACK.
He blocked.
Then countered.
For a moment—
Yelena's eyebrow lifted slightly.
Chrono's sword grazed her sleeve.
She stepped back.
A small grin returned to her face.
"…Oh?"
She pointed her wooden sword at him again.
"That was better."
Her eyes gleamed slightly.
"Let's try that again."
Chrono tightened his grip on the sword.
This might actually work.
But across from him—
Yelena was already thinking something else.
…When did his reactions get that sharp?
The sparks of lightning around her blade flickered slightly.
It seemed her interest had just increased.