By the end of the week, the Academy had definitely settled into something resembling a new normal.
The whispers never truly stopped, but they dulled, fading from sharp speculation into a constant background hum.
Albedo's name no longer carried shock when spoken. It carried certainty. After all of those battles, Albedo had won literally all of them, and Rank One was no longer questioned, everyone agreed he was still ahead of everyone else.
Challenges still came, of course, but fewer were reckless now. The boldest had already tested themselves and been broken. What remained were the patient ones.The kind that waited for circumstances, advantages, or opportunities that didn't involve facing Albedo head-on in a ranking arena.
Which was why, for the first time in days, Albedo found himself genuinely relaxed. He slept properly and trained whenever he could, feeling himself arriving at the barrier for the next rank.
