Boredom was a heavier weight than the cast on his leg.
Lack lay in the high-grade medical bed. His femur knit itself back together on the holographic display. The two-week recovery mandate was strict. Valerius had threatened to shackle him to the bedframe if he attempted so much as a push-up.
"I can do sit-ups," Lack muttered to the empty room. "Sit-ups don't require legs."
Don't, the Light Devil warned. The nurse is a kinetic-user. She’ll throw you out the window. And we’re on the fourth floor.
The door slid open with a pneumatic hiss. It wasn't the nurse.
It was the Fellowship.
Torin entered first, clutching a basket of fruit like a shield. Mina followed, her eyes red-rimmed but smiling. Serra, Kip, Olan, and Borg squeezed in behind them, filling the sterile room with the chaotic energy of survival.
"Your physical state is catastrophic," Torin said, placing the basket on the table.
"Thanks," Lack grunted. "Borg, don't eat the basket. It's wicker."
Borg spat out a splinter of wood. "Crunchy."
"We brought notes from the lectures," Serra said, adjusting her glasses. "And... we fixed up the Club Room. The damage from the explosion didn't reach the basement, but Jareth's Hydro-Club got flooded by the sprinklers."
Laughter rippled through the room. It was a warm sound, alien in this place of cold healing. They weren't just survivors anymore; they were a unit.
"Also," Mina whispered, leaning in, "People are talking. About you. They're calling you the 'Shadow Breaker' now. But... some people are angry. The Shadow Faculty students glare at us in the halls."
"Let them glare," Lack said, leaning back. "We're going to the Northern Wall. They can't touch us there."
Suddenly, the air in the room grew dense. A static charge prickled Lack's skin, raising the hair on his arms.
The Fellowship quieted down, parting like the Red Sea as the door opened again.
Three figures in crimson Elite uniforms walked in.
Volt (Lightning). Terra (Plant). Rian (Ice). His former classmates. The ones who had left him behind in the Reserve Class.
Torin reached for a bow that wasn't there. Borg growled low in his throat.
"Relax," Volt said, raising his hands. Sparks danced between his fingers, but they weren't aggressive. "We aren't here to fight the invalid."
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Volt walked to the foot of the bed. His target lock anchored entirely onto Lack for the first time in years. The sneer was gone, replaced by a calculating assessment.
"You took a Void Seed to the face," Volt said. "And you punched a Silent Shadow. That's... decent."
"High praise coming from you," Lack replied coolly.
"Jareth is an idiot," Rian added, his voice chilly, breath misting in the warm room. "But the Shadow Faculty is dangerous. You embarrassed them. The Dreallytear won't stop with one assassin."
Terra stepped forward. She placed a small, glass vial on the table next to the fruit. Inside, a thick green sap glowed with concentrated life mana.
"High-Grade Sap," Terra said softly. "It accelerates bone density regeneration. Drink it. We don't want you limping when we see you at the Northern Wall."
Lack blinked. "You're going to the Wall too?"
"We're the top of the Elite Stream," Volt grinned, a sharp, electric smile. "Of course we're going. Valerius invited us personally. Don't think you're special just because you nearly died."
Volt turned to leave, then paused at the door.
"Hey, Lack. That trick with the air pressure? It was clever. But next time... try not to break your own hands."
The Elites left, leaving silence and the smell of ozone in their wake.
"They gave you a gift?" Torin poked the vial. "Is it poison?"
"No," Lack smiled, picking up the glowing sap. "It's respect. Or at least, an acknowledgement that I'm worth keeping alive for round two."
? ? ?
Location: Professor Valerius's Office (Top of the Sky Tower) Time: Year 61, February 42nd (2 Weeks Post-Tournament / Departure Day)
Lack stood before the massive desk of General Valerius. He was in full uniform, his leg fully healed—Terra's sap had done its work—though his stats were still calibrating.
"Cadet Flameheart," Valerius rumbled, not looking up from his holomap. "You are cleared for duty."
"Sir," Lack saluted.
"Before we deploy," Valerius stood up. He was a mountain of a man, carved directly from the bedrock of the planet. "You need to understand who you are following. Do you know why I am the Head of Combat?"
"Because you're an Astral God Vessel, sir."
"Because I am the Wall," Valerius corrected.
He tapped the air.
[System Identification: Valerius] Patron: God of Fortresses (Astral Tier) Combat Style: Architect of War
Valerius waved his hand. A series of Invisible Cubes materialized in the air, forming a staircase. He walked up them, standing five feet in the air, his gravitational presence bearing down on Lack.
"God Ability 3: Astral Cubes," Valerius lectured. "I create solid constructs of hard light. They are invisible to the naked eye unless I will them to be seen."
He stomped his boot. The cube beneath him turned red.
"God Ability 2: Zone Enforcement. I can apply rules to my blocks. This red block? It amplifies gravity. If an enemy steps on it, they are crushed."
He jumped, blurring into motion, bouncing off three invisible walls in the room before landing back at his desk without a sound.
"Original Skill 1: Kinetic Bounce," Valerius smirked. "I don't fly, Flameheart. I just build floors where I need them, faster than gravity can pull me down."
Lack’s eyes widened. It was Illogical Logic at a master level. Valerius didn't defy physics; he built a new physics engine around himself.
"And finally," Valerius’s skin turned a metallic grey. "God Ability 1: Fortress Body. I am the castle. My skin is the gate."
His focus snapped back to Lack.
"You use vibration to find cracks. I use structure to remove them. At the Northern Wall, you will learn that a single crack can doom a city. You have potential, boy. But potential is just kinetic energy waiting to be wasted."
Valerius grabbed his heavy coat.
"Grab your team. The transport leaves in one hour. Welcome to the war."
? ? ?
[System Record: Character Progression] Status: Fully Recovered. New Item: Terra’s Sap (Consumed - Bone Density +2%). Relations:
- Elites (Volt/Terra/Rian): Rivals (Neutral-Hostile).
Valerius: Mentor (Strict).