Morning came too early.
The academy's bell echoed through the stone halls like a slow heartbeat, pulling Ira from a restless half-sleep. His right arm throbbed where Kael's blade had grazed him yesterday. The wound was shallow, but the skin around it shimmered faintly—an ember-shaped mark pulsing beneath the surface.
He flexed his hand. The glow dimmed, then returned with each beat of his heart.
That wasn't there before.
He wrapped it in bandages, slipped on his uniform, and stepped into the corridor. Students stared when he passed. Yesterday's duel had already become legend—"The Silent Burst," they called it. Rumors bred faster than mana sparks.
At the dining hall door, Kael himself appeared, bruised but standing. He gave Ira a wary nod. "Next time… warn me before you explode the floor."
Ira almost smiled. "Next time, block faster."
Laughter from nearby tables broke the tension. Maybe this place wasn't entirely hostile after all.
---
After class, Professor Liora summoned him again.
She stood by a window overlooking the training fields, sunlight cutting gold lines across her robe. "How's your arm?"
"Fine."
"Show me."
He hesitated, then unwrapped the bandage. The mark shimmered brighter in the light—thin veins of blue fire tracing outward from the center.
Liora's brows drew together. "You've been… marked by resonance."
"Resonance?" he repeated.
"It happens when two mana signatures intertwine at the source. Dangerous. Rare."
She paused. "Was anyone close to you during the duel?"
His mind flashed to silver eyes watching from the crowd. "Maybe," he said quietly.
Liora sighed. "Keep this hidden. Some at the academy would kill to study that bond."
---
Evening fell. The courtyard lanterns flickered to life, bathing the fountains in amber light.
Elara stood there again, sketchbook in hand, her hair catching the glow like spun frost.
"You're avoiding everyone," she said without looking up.
"Trying to," Ira replied.
She glanced at his arm. "It hurts, doesn't it?"
He froze. "How did you—"
"Because it hurts here too." She lifted her left wrist. The same faint ember-mark pulsed beneath her pale skin.
For a moment neither of them breathed. The air between them shimmered faintly, a soft vibration like two strings tuned to the same note.
"I guess that means we're stuck with each other," she whispered, attempting a smile.
Ira looked at the mark, then at her. "Or connected."
A gust of night wind swirled through the courtyard, scattering petals across the stone.
Somewhere in the darkness, a bell tolled—deep, warning, echoing through every tower of the academy.
Elara shivered. "That's not the dinner bell."
"No," Ira said, eyes narrowing toward the western walls where the sound came from. "That's a summons."
The mark on his arm flared again—hotter, brighter—answering something unseen beyond the gates.