Riven, Jordan, Luka, and Joey had just finished going through the rulebook created by the Voss Clan for the participants of the Clinton Game.
"Okay… that doesn't seem hard enough," Jordan said, closing the book with a dull thud.
"On paper, it's not," Harkel replied.
He leaned forward slightly, resting his arms on his knees.
"But that's just the basic rules."
The room went a little quieter.
"If we were only going off that," Harkel continued, "then yeah… all of us would be even. No real advantage on either side."
Joey frowned, tilting his head slightly.
"I'm sorry… basic rules?"
A bead of sweat slid down Harkel's face as he scratched his cheek.
"Long story short," Leo said, nodding toward Harkel, "the students taking part in this don't want the game to last long."
Harkel let out a dragged sigh before continuing.
"In the weeks before we came to the academy, the Voss family students—mainly the second-years—held a meeting. And… they added their own rules into the game."
He paused briefly.
"And 'little' isn't the word for it. These rules can speed things up way more than the clan leaders probably intended."
Harkel stood, pointing out toward the academy grounds through the window.
"The campus…" he said slowly, "…is basically split."
He walked over to his standing board and flipped it around, revealing a rough drawing of the academy layout—buildings labeled, pathways marked, and the center field circled.
"The middle field," he said, tapping it, "is now a war zone."
Everyone leaned in slightly.
"This is how it works. If we're on that field, and I—our main Voss member—get stopped and challenged to a duel…"
He looked at each of them.
"…we don't get a choice. We fight."
Silence settled over the group.
"We each have three lives. If we lose—or can't fight—we lose one."
Joey raised his hand slightly.
"After each match, win or lose, we get a one-week break," Harkel continued. "After the second loss, it's a month. After the third…"
His voice flattened.
"…we contact the clan and forfeit our role."
Joey slowly lowered his hand.
"…Now I see why the second-years were the ones pushing this," he said. "We're at a huge disadvantage. They already know how to use mana way better than us."
"That's true," Harkel admitted. "And that's exactly why we forced one rule in return. Otherwise, none of the first-years would've agreed to this."
He crossed his arms.
"Me and Leo voted against it, but there were too many of them. We lost the vote."
"So what's the rule?" Luka asked.
"The second-years can only challenge us once," Harkel said. "After that, they're restricted to their own year. If they break that rule…"
"They're forced to forfeit," Leo finished.
Luka frowned slightly.
"What if someone just… doesn't?"
Harkel didn't hesitate.
"Then all bars are gone."
That answer only confused most of them—but not Leo.
Harkel clapped his hands once, shifting the mood.
"Which is why this week matters. We're going to be fighting early. If we use this time right, we can learn enough to survive the first duel—and prepare for the second."
Riven narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Because if we lose twice…" he said slowly, "…a second-year is going to step in and take us out."
Harkel nodded.
"Exactly."
He dropped down into a cross-legged position, signaling them to do the same.
"So if we want to get stronger, we start with the foundation—mana flow."
"Mana flow?" Luka asked.
"Yes," Harkel said, raising his hand. "Even if your schools didn't teach you—because you're wallborn, no offense—everyone has mana."
Luka didn't react.
"It's weaker without an evolved ability. Mostly just enhances the body. But for those with abilities, it becomes something more. It connects to how you use your power."
He extended his index finger.
A white aura formed around his hand, tightening, focusing—until it shaped into a glowing number one.
"This is control."
The number hovered steadily.
"One way my father taught me to expand mana was by shaping it—constructing with it. So that's what we're doing."
He looked at them.
"Your turn."
Leo went first.
Almost instantly, a grayish aura formed around his finger—darker than Harkel's, but stable. A clean "1" formed without effort.
The others struggled.
Energy gathered—but it wasn't controlled. Their abilities bled into it instead of separating from it.
Harkel sighed.
"You're mixing it."
He paused, thinking, then snapped his fingers.
"Think of it like this—mana is your left hand. Your ability is your right."
They blinked.
"They look the same, but they're not. Your thumbs point in opposite directions. Same structure—different orientation."
He leaned forward slightly.
"You're trying to use your right hand when you need your left."
That seemed to click.
Slowly, they closed their eyes again.
Energy gathered—this time more controlled.
Joey was the first to succeed.
The ball of light above his palm collapsed inward, compressing into his hand. A soft golden glow spread across his fingers, trembling—
Then—
A faint "1" formed.
It flickered violently before collapsing.
Still—
Harkel smiled.
"Good."
Joey exhaled, exhausted.
"Go shower. Get some sleep. We'll continue tomorrow."
Riven and Jordan both looked annoyed, clearly tired.
Luka, on the other hand, looked completely refreshed—like he had just taken a full twelve-hour nap.
Riven went next.
His mana formed slower… unstable at first.
Then—
A light green aura appeared.
Harkel froze for a split second.
"…That's strange," he muttered under his breath.
If anything, it should've been blue—lightning—or pure white like standard mana.
But green…?
Riven didn't notice.
His "1" formed—shaky, but real.
Next was Jordan.
A deep, pitch-black aura formed.
Harkel wasn't surprised.
That matched his ability.
Finally, Luka.
A thick, blood-red glow formed around his finger.
His number came out clean.
Harkel exhaled slowly.
"…Good."
He stood up.
""We're done for today. Don't push yourselves too far—we still have a few days to improve."
An hour later, everyone was in bed, fast asleep, their bodies and minds recovering for whatever the next day had in store.
Everyone except Luka.
The boy lay there, staring at the ceiling. He didn't know why he couldn't sleep, but he had his guesses.
"Is it because I'm a Lesser Blood now?" Luka thought. "Now that I think about it… that Nyx guy didn't tell me anything about what I can actually do as a vampire. But I guess that wasn't his goal."
He paused, frowning slightly.
"Wait… he didn't even tell us how long the prey effect lasts… or when I'd have to feed again."
Luka exhaled, running a hand through his hair.
"This is such a pain…"
He sat up.
"If I can't sleep, I might as well make this time useful."
Crossing his legs, Luka placed his hands in front of him. A faint red aura began to gather, wrapping around his fingers as he focused.
Slowly… carefully…
He tried to form a shape.
A number.
After a minute, a crooked "1" appeared in his left hand. It was unstable, uneven, barely holding together—but it was there.
Luka didn't care.
He focused harder, trying to maintain it.
Ten seconds.
Fifteen.
Twenty—
The shape collapsed, the aura snapping back into his palm.
Luka let out a sharp breath, staring at his hand.
Then—
Ding.
[System: Mana Control has improved +2 Mana]
[Mana: 14/14]
Luka blinked.
"…What?"
Shock flickered across his face.
"So this thing is more useful than I thought."
His mana had gone from 12 to 14.
"So it can increase my mana… and my control at the same time."
He raised his hand again, forming another "1." It was still off-center, still unstable—but better.
It was progress.
And that was enough.
Luka kept going, experimenting, pushing, shaping, breaking, and reforming his mana over and over again.
—
Four hours passed.
Luka finally felt it—sleep creeping in.
He yawned, his body relaxing slightly.
Then—
A low growl echoed from his stomach.
"…Oh no."
[System: Your hunger grows. In two hours, the user will lose 1 HP every minute.]
"Crap…"
Luka sighed, rubbing his face.
"I guess using mana makes me hungry faster."
His mana had climbed from 12… to 14… to 25.
He stood up quietly and walked over to Riven, gently tapping his shoulder.
Riven stirred.
"…Hmm… what, Luka…" he muttered, sitting up groggily.
"I'm hungry."
That was all it took.
Riven was instantly awake.
He held out his arm without hesitation.
"Go ahead."
Luka blinked.
"Just like that?"
"Yeah. Why not?" Riven shrugged. "But we do need to figure out a way for you to carry blood. We need to know how long you can last. Right now, it seems like about a day."
"Actually… no."
Luka quickly explained what he had been doing for the past few hours and how it likely sped up his hunger.
Riven frowned slightly.
"Then you should slow down on using your mana," he said. "If you keep pushing it, you'll just get hungry faster. And how do you think the others are gonna react if you start biting people? They're gonna think we're weird as hell."
Luka chuckled quietly.
"Yeah… fair."
"Now come on," Riven said, closing his eyes and tilting his head slightly, exposing his neck.
Luka hesitated.
A few seconds passed.
Riven cracked an eye open.
"What are you doing?" he whispered sharply, stopping himself from raising his voice.
"This is my first time doing this, okay?" Luka shot back in a hushed tone.
"…Yeah," Riven muttered, sitting up. "I get that."
He paused, thinking.
"Alright. I've got a better way."
Riven opened his inventory, pulling out a few items. Some were random—like a cup—but others were more practical.
A knife.
He wrapped part of the hilt, adjusting his grip before taking a steady breath.
Then—
Slice.
The blade cut across his palm.
[System: -4 HP]
[System: User is bleeding. Will lose 1 HP every hour.]
Riven cursed quietly under his breath but stayed focused.
"Okay… okay…"
He squeezed his hand, letting the blood flow faster into the cup. Once it was enough, he held it out.
Luka stared at him.
For a moment, he didn't move.
Then he smiled slightly.
"…Thanks."
He took the cup and drank.
One gulp.
Two.
Gone.
He swallowed, his expression shifting slightly.
He would be lying if he said he didn't notice it.
The taste.
Sweet.
But he didn't let himself focus on it.
Not when he knew what he was drinking.
Ding.
[System: User has consumed a portion of Fairy Blood]
[+0.5 HP Gained]
"…Huh?"
Luka blinked.
Even if Nyx hadn't told them anything… the system would have eventually.
"Hey, we need to fix your hand," Luka said quickly, standing up and heading toward the bathroom.
"Don't bother."
Luka paused.
Riven was staring at his palm.
The wound had already started to close.
"…What?"
"It's already healing," Riven said, flexing his hand slightly. "Maybe it's because I'm close to evolving. If I really am part fairy… maybe there's some healing trait."
He paused.
Then his expression shifted slightly.
"…Actually."
"In a dream," Riven said slowly, "I was fighting this beast. It had claws sharp enough to cut down trees… and it cut my leg off."
Luka frowned, confused.
"…What?"
Before he could question it—
A soft, light green aura formed around Riven's hand.
Luka's eyes widened.
"Wait—"
"When my leg got cut off," Riven continued, focusing, "I used mana to regenerate it."
The green glow intensified for a moment.
Then faded.
The cut on his hand was completely gone.
Luka stared at him, stunned.
Right now, all of them could barely control mana enough to move it to their arms.
But Riven—
He had just focused it into a specific area.
And healed himself.
"…What…"
Luka's mind raced.
Healing abilities existed. Everyone knew that.
But if mana alone could do that… then what was the point of a healer?
Unless—
"…Riven's mana has healing properties," Luka thought. "All of ours might. Everyone's mana is a different color… except Harkel's. That could mean each of us has a unique trait tied to it."
But instead of excitement—
A nervous feeling crept in.
Riven was already doing things no one else could.
And he learned it… from a dream.
Luka swallowed.
"…What is he going to become later?"
He looked at Riven again.
And for the first time—
The thought didn't just impress him.
It worried him.