The S-Rank lecture hall was a masterpiece of architectural arrogance. Tiered marble benches spiraled upward toward a ceiling painted with the constellations of the First Empire, each star embedded with a glow-crystal that pulsed in time with the Academy's main mana-vein.
It was my first day back in a "standard" classroom since the Rift. Elara sat to my right, her silver mana creating a quiet, protective hum that acted as a barrier between me and the whispers. To my left, however, sat Seraphina Vane.
She didn't take notes. She simply watched me, her Glacier Mana making the ink in my well sluggish and thick.
"Today's lecture," Professor Hecate announced, her voice cutting through the murmurs like a blade, "is on Mana-Resonance and Harmonic Interference. Since we have a unique specimen in our midst, we will be discussing how a 'Fracture' interacts with ambient fields."
Every head in the room turned toward me.
"Cassian Valerius," Hecate said, her eyes pinning me to the bench. "Come to the dais. We are going to demonstrate the 'Sink' effect in a controlled environment."
I stood up, moving with the slow, deliberate fragility of a man made of glass. As I walked down the stairs, I caught the eye of Kaelen Voss. He was smirking, tapping a finger against a Grade-3 Focus Ring on his hand. He wasn't just here to learn; he was here to see me fail.
Hecate placed a Resonance Orb on the table. It glowed with a steady, golden light—the equivalent of a constant Grade-1 output.
"Touch the orb, Cassian," Hecate commanded. "Class, observe the light spectrum."
As my fingers brushed the glass, the Void-Skin beneath my palm pulled at the energy. The golden light didn't just dim; it stretched toward my hand, the color shifting from gold to a bruised, sickly grey before vanishing into my skin.
"Fascinating," Hecate murmured. "The absorption isn't just passive; it's directional. It behaves like a vacuum seal. Now, Kaelen, provide a Grade-2 interference."
Kaelen didn't hesitate. He snapped his fingers, sending a spark of Blue Lightning into the orb. The gold light turned violent, jagged.
"He's pushing it," I thought, feeling the surge. "He's trying to trigger a Grade-3 spike to see if I 'overflow' in front of everyone."
I let my arm shake. I let my breathing become a wet, rattling sound. I forced the Void-Core to only swallow the edges of the lightning, letting the excess heat scorch the sleeve of my uniform. The smell of burning wool filled the front row.
"Enough!" Hecate snapped, sensing the surge.
I pulled my hand back, falling against the table, clutching my "burnt" wrist.
"As you can see," Hecate addressed the class, "the Neutralizer can handle the frequency, but the physical body pays the price for the conversion."
As I stumbled back to my seat, passing the back row, a student I didn't recognize—a "D-Rank" dropped a rag near my foot.
Hidden in the folds of the cloth was a small, black stone. I stepped on it, crushing it beneath my boot.
Vibration: Three short, one long.
The message from the Umbra Collective: The Voss Archive guards have been rotated. The Vault is blind for the next sixty minutes.
I sat back down next to Elara, my head bowed as if in pain.
"Are you okay?" she whispered, her hand hovering over my scorched sleeve, her silver light already beginning a healing weave.
"I'm fine," I lied, my voice a hollow rasp. "I just... I need to rest after class."
Seraphina leaned in close, her cold breath ghosting over my ear. "That was a Grade-2 lightning spark, Valerius. But you didn't flinch until the light changed. Your nerves are either dead, or you're a better actor than the Imperial Playwrights."
"I'm just... used to the pain," I whispered back.
She didn't look convinced. She looked like she wanted to dissect me.
But as the lecture continued, my mind was miles away. While Hecate talked about "Harmonic Interference," my organization was currently sliding through the shadows of the Voss Estate. By the time this class ended, I would own the Voss family's darkest secrets.