Rain was still falling when I left Astraeus.

  Not a real downpour. Just that gray drizzle that seemed to be part of Eidryss itself. The pavement shone under the streetlights, and the air carried that damp smell of cold stone and metal I had come to associate with the district around the academy. My muscles were still heavy from training with Kellan. Not painful enough to stop me, but enough to remind me of every movement from the session.

  I walked slowly.

  Not because I was tired.

  Because I was counting the money.

  The bills were folded neatly inside my inner pocket. The scholarship for the month. A ridiculous amount compared to what the academy’s heirs spent in a single evening, but for me it meant something else entirely. Every piece of it already had a destination in my mind: Amane’s medical bills.

  I could still see the hospital room.

  The machines.

  The steady rhythm of the heart monitor.

  I knew exactly how many days of treatment that money could buy.

  So I walked in silence, one hand in my jacket pocket, my fingers closed around the envelope.

  I wasn’t thinking about anything else.

  And that was probably why I heard them before I saw them.

  A laugh.

  Fake.

  Ugly.

  I stopped.

  Not abruptly.

  Just enough to raise my head slightly.

  Three silhouettes stood beneath the orange glow of a streetlamp.

  Them.

  The same ones.

  My body recognized them before my mind did.

  The first.

  Tall.

  Wide jaw.

  Always that crooked smile.

  The second.

  Smaller, but with that restless tension in his shoulders, like a dog ready to bite.

  And the third.

  The one who stayed a little behind.

  The one who watched more than he spoke.

  I remembered them very clearly.

  The high school hallway.

  The metal lockers.

  The blows.

  The feeling of the floor against my face.

  The smile on the tall one’s face when he asked for the money.

  “Well, well.”

  The tall one stepped forward.

  “Look who it is.”

  I didn’t answer.

  I just looked at them.

  The second burst out laughing.

  “Seriously, I thought we’d never see him again.”

  “Maybe he found himself a new wallet,” the tall one said.

  He came closer.

  I could smell alcohol on his breath.

  “You look like you’re doing better, shrimp.”

  Still nothing.

  My fingers tightened around the envelope.

  I could feel my heart beating faster.

  But it wasn’t the same sensation as before.

  Not panic.

  Not paralysis.

  Something else.

  A cold pressure in my chest.

  The third one spoke at last.

  His voice was lower.

  “We’re not wasting time.”

  He pointed at my coat with his chin.

  “The money.”

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  Silence.

  The rain kept falling.

  Drops sliding over the pavement.

  I could feel their eyes on me.

  The tall one stepped closer again.

  “We asked you a question.”

  I remembered something Kellan had said.

  “Read the shoulders.”

  I looked at his.

  The tension.

  The shift of weight.

  The hips.

  And at the same moment—

  The window appeared.

  Not in front of my eyes.

  Not exactly.

  More like… somewhere inside my mind.

  [Quest Detected]

  On the Path of the Spear

  The world belongs to predators.

  But a warrior chooses his target.

  Main Objective:

  Confront the aggressors.

  Optional Conditions for Success:

  — Defeat the three aggressors.

  — Identify and defeat the dominant predator.

  Reward: Echo synchronization progression.

  I read the lines.

  Once.

  Then the window vanished.

  The tall one was still talking.

  “…you even listening when we talk to you?”

  I still didn’t answer.

  Because I was watching something else.

  Not his words.

  Not his face.

  His body.

  The broad shoulders.

  The weight leaning forward.

  The confidence.

  The other two looked at him before moving.

  It was obvious.

  Him.

  The dominant predator.

  The system had only confirmed what my instinct already knew.

  I felt something rising in my chest.

  Not anger.

  Not exactly.

  More like a straight line forming in my mind.

  A simple choice.

  The tall one reached toward my coat.

  “The money.”

  I moved.

  Not backward.

  Forward.

  One step.

  Then another.

  They were surprised.

  I saw it.

  In the second one’s shoulders.

  In the slight recoil of the third.

  The tall one frowned.

  “Huh?”

  I kept walking.

  Silent.

  His eyes narrowed.

  “You think you—”

  I planted my foot against the wall.

  My whole body knew what to do.

  Not like a movement I had learned.

  Like a memory.

  The ground pushed against my foot.

  My muscles tightened.

  I jumped.

  Cold air struck my face.

  I saw the surprise in his eyes.

  His weight was still leaning forward.

  Too late to step back.

  My body pivoted.

  My leg extended.

  The movement was sharp.

  Circular.

  Descending.

  My heel struck his temple.

  The sound was sharp.

  His body collapsed as if someone had cut the strings holding him up.

  Silence fell.

  The rain kept falling.

  I had just landed on the pavement.

  And for the first time in a very long time…

  I wasn’t the one on the ground.

  The tall one’s body collapsed heavily onto the pavement.

  The impact echoed through the narrow corridor formed by the surrounding buildings. For a fraction of a second, everything froze. The rain kept falling, tapping softly against the ground and sliding down the dark bricks.

  I remained where I had landed, feet still anchored in my stance.

  My breathing was faster.

  But my mind was strangely calm.

  The second one stared at me like I had just broken the rules of reality.

  “…What the—”

  He never finished the sentence.

  The third one, however, didn’t look shocked.

  Surprised, yes.

  But not frozen.

  His eyes were already moving, analyzing the situation.

  The body on the ground.

  Me.

  The distance.

  The possible exits.

  I saw the moment he understood something.

  And that’s when the thought crossed my mind.

  I could leave.

  The money was still in my pocket.

  The most dangerous one was on the ground.

  I could run.

  No one would chase me.

  Part of me knew that.

  But another thought followed immediately.

  Colder.

  Sharper.

  If I want to become strong…

  …I can’t run from two D-Class guys.

  They weren’t elite fighters.

  I knew that.

  They weren’t at Astraeus for that.

  The second one had been admitted thanks to his athletic results in university competitions. A recognized sprinter—fast, explosive. Not a strategist, not a technician. Just someone who could run fast and hit hard.

  The third one…

  He was different.

  He didn’t have an impressive physique.

  But his name circulated often in academic discussions.

  A prodigy in strategic analysis and tactical modeling. Some professors said he could end up in military command units. His mind was fast.

  Too fast for someone like me.

  And yet…

  They were still D-Class.

  Only one class above me.

  Something tightened in my chest.

  Not rage.

  A decision.

  I can beat them.

  The second one growled.

  “You little—”

  He charged.

  Too fast.

  Not thought through.

  The distance was too short for him to build momentum.

  And the corridor was narrow.

  Perfect.

  I shifted slightly.

  His fist passed beside my face.

  I struck immediately.

  Not clean.

  But brutal.

  Straight into his nose.

  The shock ran through my fingers.

  Blood splashed.

  He stumbled back, swearing.

  I didn’t wait.

  One step forward.

  Elbow to the jaw.

  Then another strike.

  Again.

  Again.

  He tried to raise his arms, but the space was too tight.

  His shoulders slammed into the walls.

  His movements were disorganized.

  The corridor was perfect for this.

  One against several.

  The space prevented them from coordinating.

  I kept going.

  A punch to the ribs.

  Another to the stomach.

  His breath broke.

  He folded.

  I struck again.

  When he fell, he didn’t even try to get back up.

  My breathing was heavier now.

  My arms burned.

  My hands trembled slightly.

  But only the third one remained.

  I turned toward him.

  And that’s when I realized.

  He was gone.

  A sound behind me.

  A quick movement.

  I turned.

  Too late.

  He was already running.

  Not to escape.

  To reposition.

  I understood immediately what he was doing.

  The corridor had been our battlefield.

  And he had just decided to leave it.

  I followed.

  Stepping out of the narrow passage.

  And that’s when the space opened up.

  The back gardens of the apartment buildings.

  Wide stretches of wet grass.

  Low fences.

  Trees.

  And most importantly…

  Space.

  Far too much space.

  The third one stopped about ten meters away.

  Breathing controlled.

  Cold eyes.

  He wasn’t smiling.

  He was thinking.

  I saw his gaze move quickly.

  My legs.

  My shoulders.

  My hands.

  He was analyzing.

  Then he spoke.

  “I should’ve guessed.”

  His voice was calm.

  Too calm.

  “You’re not the same anymore.”

  I didn’t answer.

  He tilted his head slightly.

  “But it doesn’t change anything.”

  A small smile appeared.

  “You just left the only place where you had a chance.”

  My heart started beating faster.

  Because he was right.

  In the corridor…

  I controlled the space.

  Here…

  It was different.

  He began to move.

  Not toward me.

  Around me.

  His steps were quick.

  Precise.

  Testing my reactions.

  “You see,” he continued, “I’ve never been the strongest.”

  He stepped suddenly to the right.

  I turned instinctively.

  Mistake.

  He immediately changed direction.

  “But I’ve always been the fastest to understand what’s happening.”

  He picked up a stone from the ground.

  Threw it.

  Not to hit me.

  To force a reaction.

  I raised my arm.

  At the same moment he charged.

  His strike came from the side.

  I raised my guard.

  Impact.

  More precise than the others.

  More calculated.

  I stepped back.

  He didn’t pursue.

  He immediately retreated.

  Distance.

  Analysis.

  Again.

  I understood the problem.

  He wasn’t trying to beat me quickly.

  He was testing me.

  Waiting for a mistake.

  And in a space this open…

  He had the advantage.

  I could feel fatigue returning to my muscles.

  Training with Kellan.

  The blows.

  The system’s mission.

  Everything weighed on me.

  But deep inside…

  One thought remained.

  I have to win.

  Not just for the money.

  Not just for Amane.

  But because if I lose to someone like him…

  Then I’ll never be able to face what’s waiting for me at Astraeus.

  The third one smiled faintly.

  “You see?”

  He spread his arms slightly.

  “Now we can talk seriously.”

  Then he raised his guard again.

  And I understood that the fight…

  …had only just begun.