The rush of air hadn't even settled before Dominic found his feet touching down on something firm and unnervingly bright. The sudden shift from motion to stillness left his stomach lurching like he'd just stepped off a roller coaster. Strange, because Master Aro clearly knew how to prevent that before.
The wind quieted, and when Dominic finally blinked the blur out of his eyes, he saw it — a path.
Wide enough to fit a whole Football pitch and then some. It stretched endlessly ahead, made entirely of smooth white bricks that gleamed like polished bone. Flanked on both sides by towering trees.
And down that wide path stood the rest of his group.
Dominic squinted. "Wait… what are they—"
Master Aro's grip loosened, and Dominic stumbled a step forward. He turned around, about to ask what was going on.
"Master Aro?"
The man was gone.
Dominic spun a full circle. Nothing. Just forest and white bricks and the quiet murmur of voices up ahead.
"…Yeah, of course," Dominic muttered under his breath.
He sighed and walked down the path toward the others, brushing dust off himself. As he got closer, he saw just how many people were there — not just his group, but dozens of others.
There were students everywhere. Around ten groups, maybe more, each standing in tight sets of five. Their uniforms, if you could even call them that, were wildly different. Some wore sharp black coats lined with metallic threads that shimmered faintly, others had loose robes covered in faintly glowing runes, and a few looked like they'd come straight out of a sci-fi movie — sleek armor, belts humming with faint energy.
"I didn't even know I was supposed to be coming."
Lune raised an eyebrow. "Of course you didn't."
"Hey, that's not fair," Dominic said, still half-looking over his shoulder. "Master Aro, why didn't you—oh right. He's gone."
Oravi smirked. "You really haven't figured out how he works yet, huh?"
Before Dominic could answer, a few murmurs rippled through the nearby groups. He followed the direction of their eyes and realized they weren't looking at him — they were staring at Rhoj. Some whispered too loudly to be accidental.
"So they're really allowing those abominations to join the academy?" one voice said.
Another replied quickly, "Aye, most Eidra are actually highly regarded. Careful with that mouth."
Dominic frowned. "Eidra?" he thought. "That's… Rhoj's kind?"
There was so much Master Aro hadn't told him yet. Too much.
Rhoj's jaw tightened, his usually bright eyes dimming a little.
"You okay, buddy?" Dominic asked quietly.
Rhoj shrugged. "Used to it."
Lune's expression flickered — a subtle displeasure, almost hidden. Dominic noticed, but didn't say anything. Instead, he looked back up just as the air shimmered.
A massive translucent screen appeared in the sky, right in the center of the path. Its edges hummed, pixels rearranging themselves until numbers appeared: 60. Then 59, 58…
Dominic squinted. "Uh… is that supposed to be counting down?"
***
At the edge of the forest clearing, in a wide pavilion built from smooth stone and living roots, the instructors stood in silence. A massive crystal screen in front of them displayed the students' every move. Men and women stood apart, quiet and composed, all fit, focused, and watching the event unfold.
Lumin was there too. Eyes sharp as knives. "The countdown for the exhibition has begun," he said calmly.
Master Aro folded his arms. "Can't wait to see how they handle it."
A chuckle came from his right. Melv — one of the instructors — leaned lazily against a pillar. His robe was long and uneven, sleeveless on one side, the frayed ends swaying faintly like smoke. Black and crimson. "Of course you can't," he said. "With the kind of quirky group you're handling."
A few of the instructors let out restrained laughs. Aro didn't.
"Watch your tongue, Melv," he said mildly. "I may be fading, but I'm still high-ranking here."
The smirk slid right off Melv's face.
Lumin cleared his throat, cutting through the tension. "As usual," he began, "while every student understands the basics of SoulCraft, not all have discovered their innate affinities."
"That's the interesting part," another instructor muttered.
***
The timer hit 1.
Dominic braced himself without knowing why. Then the screen flashed 0, vanished—
—and immediately reappeared with a new timer, this time counting up. Before he could process that, everything exploded into motion.
Students shouted, powers flared, the quiet forest-path turned into chaos.
"What's happening!?" Dominic yelled.
Oravi glanced at him, exasperated. "You really didn't make any enquiries, did you? This is the exhibition stage — a multiple-school brawl to showcase our skills and innate affinities!"
"Brawl!?" Dominic's voice cracked. "Like, actual fighting? Isn't that dangerous for the weaker guys?"
"It is." Emby chirped in.
Lune cracked his knuckles. "Best not to engage. Ride it out till the five-minute mark."
As he said that, a girl swooped out of nowhere, grabbed Lune by the neck of his shirt, and lifted him clean off the ground
The girl hovered low, dragging him forward like he weighed nothing, his legs barely scraping the bricks. The scene unfolded almost in slow motion.
Emby crossed her arms. "Well, I can see you're riding it out real well, Lune."
Lune could only choke out, "This… is not what I meant!"
Before the girl could haul him higher, thick vines burst from the ground, wrapping around her midair. Emby's eyes glowed faintly green as the vines tightened, pulling Lune back down.
Nearby, Rhoj was already in the thick of it. Several students surrounded him, throwing blasts and charges of energy. Each strike that hit him made his body glow faintly yellow — the air crackling around him.
He grinned. "Oh, now you've done it."
The energy built, condensed — and with one stomp, he unleashed it in a shockwave, knocking his opponents backward.
Dominic whistled. "Cool affinity, Rhoj!"
A student nearby sneered. "Looks like a downgraded version of the Overseer's."
Another one elbowed him. "Watch your mouth when you speak of the Overseer."
Dominic groaned inwardly. "Great. Another mysterious name. Overseer? My brain's already full."
Before he could dwell on it, a deafening boom tore past his ear. He barely dodged — barely — as a blur shot by, air rippling in its wake.
"What the hell—!" Dominic stumbled and rolled. His arm hit the ground wrong, pain searing up to his shoulder. "Ow, ow, ow!"
***
In the pavilion, the instructors silently watched their students.
Some frowned. Some smiled faintly. Master Aro…was clearly enjoying himself.
Lumin's wrist device flickered. "I just received word," he said quietly. "The Overseer is on his way to the academy. With his son."
All the instructors straightened. "What? Without prior notice?"
Master Aro's expression faded from joy to unreadable neutrality.
***
Back at the exhibition, Dominic sat by the edge of the battlefield, wincing and holding up his arm. Oravi knelt beside him.
"Ouch, you really scratched yourself up," She placed a hand on the wound.
"Wait, what are you doing—it hurts—ow!"
Before he could pull back, the sting vanished. The skin sealed up, smooth and clean as if it had never happened. Dominic blinked, amazed.
"Whoa. So that's your innate affinity?"
Oravi hesitated. "Uh… yeah. Something like that."
Her tone said no, but he didn't press.
Across the field, Lune landed back on solid ground, fists blazing faintly with energy.
Dominic tilted his head. "So your affinity's like Rhoj's?"
"What? No. This is just basic chi reinforcement," Lune said flatly, slamming his fist into a construct that shattered like glass.
Then the ground shifted beneath them.
A student on the far side raised both arms, the white bricks trembling. They lifted, rearranged, and in moments, walls rose around Dominic, Rhoj, and Lune. A castle formed, tall and seamless. The ground warped into living constructs that lunged like traps.
"Oh, that's just great," Dominic groaned.
Lune smashed through a few. His eyes flickered — for a split second, the pupils slit like a predator's.
Dominic noticed. "Lune, your eyes—"
"Oh no. Not now," Lune muttered.
Rhoj noticed Dominic standing defenseless. "Stay close, Dominic!"
"Yeah, sure, no problem, I'll just—"
But Rhoj was already charging forward. He spotted an open window above. And, ignoring the perfectly usable staircase beside it, he turned to Dominic.
"Rhoj… don't you dare."
"This is the only way!" Rhoj declared, grabbing him by the arm.
"There's literally stairs, Rhoj! Stairs!"
"This is the only way!"
Lune facepalmed mid-fight. "What are these two goofballs doing?"
"Rhoj, no! No no no—Rhoj!" Dominic's voice pitched up. "I just got healed!"
Rhoj grinned wildly. "If there's one thing I've learned in life—it's that nothing can hurt you as long as you believe in yourself!"
He jumped.
"Believe!"
Silence.
Then a distant thud.
Cut to both of them lying on the ground outside the castle. Dominic groaned, face half-buried in grass.
"…Rhoj… why…"
Rhoj sighed. "The universe is against Rhoj."
Oravi, Emby, and Lune arrived seconds later. Oravi immediately knelt, placing her hand on Dominic's chest.
"Are you two serious?," Emby muttered.
Lune crossed his arms, holding in a laugh.
"How did you get out?" Oravi asked him.
He pointed lazily back. "I took the conveniently placed stairs."
Oravi rolled her eyes.
The timer above flickered one last time before vanishing completely. The exhibition was over.
The students dispersed like nothing had happened — laughing, chatting, brushing off dust as if they hadn't just committed acts of warfare.
Rhoj stretched. "The instructors should be done with their meeting by now. Let's go see Master Aro."
They walked down the path, the forest quiet again. And then they saw him — Master Aro, standing among the instructors. But someone else stood at the center.
A tall, imposing man, same height and build as Aro. His skin tone was a very light brown, almost beige, his wavy black hair falling perfectly. He wore a regal garment — fine linen, with a gold shoulder drape that gleamed under the sunlight. Metallic ornaments ran across its edges. Every motion he made looked heavy with authority.
Beside him stood a boy. His son. Dressed similarly, minus the drape. Slightly taller than Dominic, wearing a subtle, permanent frown — that sharp, annoyed kind, though his face was calm.
"The Overseer," Emby whispered.
The instructors stood respectfully as the Overseer spoke with them. Dominic couldn't make out the words. Curiosity got the better of him. He took a few steps forward.
"Dominic," Oravi hissed. "Don't."
But he kept moving until he could just hear them.
"Aro," the man said.
"Thurn," Master Aro replied.
That stern face softened into something faintly amused.
"Ahh, you brought your boy," Aro said.
Thurn nodded. "He'll be coronated soon. Wanted to see parts of the city he's usually kept from — including the academy."
"I see," Aro replied with a calm smile.
Thurn's tone warmed slightly. "You're doing good work here, all of you."
At that, two guards stepped forward, tapping their feet in perfect rhythm. The ground beneath Thurn and his son glowed, lifted, and turned into a shimmering platform that carried them away into the air.
As the dust settled, Dominic froze. He suddenly found himself floating, arms and legs flailing slightly. Master Aro stood below, hand raised lazily.
"How much did you hear?" Aro asked, almost playfully.
"Only the last parts!" Dominic blurted, kicking gently in the air.
Aro smiled faintly and lowered him until he hovered at his shoulder height. They joined the group, Dominic still suspended and rotating slowly like an awkward balloon.
"So," Aro said. "How did it go?"
The group exchanged glances.
"Chaotic," Emby said.
"That's good," Aro replied. "Now you have a sense of the academy. And of your peers." He paused. "Though I should mention — I won't be your only instructor. Others will teach specific subjects, along with other sets of students. Your first class without me starts tomorrow. Be careful — most instructors aren't as friendly as I am."
The group wasn't so happy about the news.
Dominic looked around and groaned. "I still haven't had breakfast today."