The whispers that had been curling through the academy's cold stone corridors like poisonous ivy for days finally erupted that morning in the dining hall.
A mechanical, echoing voice from the ceiling of the massive Obsidian Dining Hall cut through the clatter of cutlery like a knife:
[Announcement: Attention all students. Our academy's traditional 'Special Ward Rating and Promotion' event will commence exactly one week from today. You may use the information panels for registration and rules.]
The silence was instantly replaced by a chaotic uproar.
Elian slowly lowered his spoon into his soup bowl. His face had gone pale. "We've reached the one damn time in my three years at this academy that concerns me the least," he muttered, his voice trembling. "I just need to graduate quietly and take over my father's business. This stuff isn't for us. What about you, Vane?"
Vane's eyes, however, were fixed on the other end of the hall. His gaze was locked onto Prince Julian, who was currently surrounded by a crowd that practically worshipped him. Everyone was trampling over each other just to pair up with the arrogant prince, desperate to get under his wing.
The rules were simple: The seven active Pillar Heirs currently in the academy could not team up with each other. To enter the arena, they had to choose a 'Sword' or a 'Shield' from their own families or other vassal houses.
At Elian's question, Vane took a deep breath. Without breaking eye contact with Julian, he whispered in that chillingly calm voice of his:
"I'm participating."
Clang!
The spoon slipped from Elian's grasp and hit the table. His eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his skull. "A-Alright, we get that you've been lucky so far! But Vane, you'll die out there! And besides... who would even take you?"
As Vane stared at his older brother across the hall, only a twisted, mocking smile formed on his lips.
From the depths of his mind, that ancient, arrogant woman's voice echoed. "Truly... sometimes even I cannot comprehend the ideas in that head of yours, pawn."
Without wiping that sociopathic smile off his face, Vane gave Elian a pitiful reply. "No matter what... brothers are meant for times exactly like these, Elian. I'm sure he feels the exact same way."
As the sun set behind the sharp spires of Valerius, heavy thuds echoed from the academy's abandoned rear courtyard, a place littered with ancient statues.
Vane was relentlessly striking a makeshift training dummy—a sack filled with sand and stones—with the rusty dagger in his hand. He was panting. Sweat dripped from his forehead.
"Aether arts, from what I have seen, are not merely about giving form to power and creating weapons," Lysandra said, floating around him in her spirit form. "True mastery lies in bending those ancient elements bestowed upon the Pillars."
Vane paused for a moment, lowered his dagger, and pushed back the messy black hair sticking to his forehead. When he tossed his shirt aside, his physique gleamed in the twilight. He was no longer that scrawny kid. His muscles were defined like a taut bowstring, and he had grown taller. In another life, he easily had the physique to be a model in the Capital. The young boy now bore his mother's cursed beauty, yet carried his father's predatory demeanor.
"Vane," the Empress continued. "From what I can sense, you do not possess a base aether element. For instance, the First Pillar family commands golden flames. Your father, King Vorian, can command not only those golden flames but also storms, thanks to his mother, who was from the Sixth Pillar."
Vane's purple eyes narrowed with a dangerous intellect. "In short, hybrid elements exist as a result of political marriages between the Pillars."
Lysandra was secretly impressed by the boy's analytical mind. "Yes, that is exactly the term for it. However, due to the anomalous body you inhabit... your aether element was absorbed and destroyed by that rusty dagger before it could even manifest."
As Vane pulled a dry t-shirt over his head, his mind was already calculating deadly possibilities.
"Lysandra... If the aether element inside me is gone, and I'm just a bottomless sponge capable of absorbing aether... Is there a way to use the other elements?" he asked. "If multiple aether elements can merge in a single body, and I was able to steal the base form of Professor Vespera's Ignis flame, circulate it through my body, and absorb it... What if I absorb even more, use a portion of it to temper my body, and use the rest as my own element?"
The ancient witch paused in astonishment. "In all my life, I have never encountered an anomaly like you, Vane. In my era, aether was not a toy for humans to use. They were pure energy forms meant for us to consume. That is, until those first Pillars betrayed us... You know what we need to conduct the necessary research, my pawn."
Vane straightened his shirt and cracked his neck.
"Yeah. That savage environment where I can absorb more aether has already come knocking at our door."
Vane suddenly stopped. His purple eyes drifted toward the dark corner of the courtyard where the faceless statues stood. The rusty dagger materialized in his hand. The casual tone in his voice instantly shifted into a deadly chill.
"But before we discuss that..." he whispered into the darkness. "Let's find out who exactly has been spying on us."