Raizen frowned. "You mean… beasts? You make them?"

"In a sense" he said. "We summon forms from our Eon. But they are not tools. They are living constructs. They must be guided, controlled, trusted. If the bond is weak…" His voice lowered slightly. "The beast may take control instead."

Saffi swallowed, shoulders lifting a little closer to her ears. "That sounds… Dangerous."

"It is" he agreed, without drama. "But mastery always is, each in their own way."

Raizen's hand brushed his swords. Summoning living things from Eon... Fighting beside them… It sounded incredible… And like stepping into someone else's battlefield entirely.

He felt his chest tighten with a mix of intrigue and unease.

They turned onto a long, slightly upward sloping bridge that followed the curve of a massive branch. The branch thickened ahead, merging into a broad plateau of wood that jutted away from the main trunk.

From the distance, Raizen saw it:

A structure grown from a tree itself, its walls formed by thick, intertwined branches that curved and twisted into shapes too deliberate to be natural. Open arches let light through, and thin streams of water trickled along carved channels, disappearing into the wood again.

At its base, a slice of the trunk had been cut flat and polished, forming a giant platform that could have held an entire neighborhood from the Hive, back from Neoshima.

Raizen glanced back at the burn scars in the distance, now half hidden by branches.

If the beasts listen so well, how did whatever did that slip through?

The host's gaze returned to him.

"Eon can take many forms. More than we have names for" he said. "We chose this path. Other cities chose others."

Raizen wet his lips.

"Then what does Neoshima's Lotus Academy specialize in?" he asked quietly.

The question slipped out before he could stop it.

He had fought. He had trained. He had bled inside the Eon Hall and the Arena and the Heart.

Everyone he knew spoke of Lotus Academy like the pinnacle of… Something. But hearing Ukai's host speak with such certainty about their focus made something feel strangely hollow.

He drifted closer to Saffi as they walked, lowering his voice.

"What do we specialize in?" he asked near her ear.

She stiffened slightly at the closeness, a quick flush rising in her cheeks. For a second her eyes cut to his, then away, then back again, pupils a little wider than usual.

Work face. Focus.

Her expression shifted, the familiar determined line settling into her brow.

"Information and technology" she said. "Neoshima has the sharpest minds. Lotus Academy is built on that. Data, analysis, systems. We take what the world gives us and turn it into tools and structures. We are... generalists."

"Generalists?" Raizen repeated.

"We don't have a single Eon specialty" she admitted. "We don't teach a specific mastery like Ukai does. We teach principles. Adaptability. Our graduates can fit into any system. That's the idea."

"That is why we are the best?" he asked.

"That is why they say we are the best" she replied.

The words hung there for a second.

"My apologies to interrupt" the guide said. "But from my knowledge, Neoshima's warriors - I believe they're called Vanguards – are unmatched in Nyx combat or weaponized combat."

Raizen answered with a nod. He tried to imagine explaining Lotus Academy the way their host had just spoken about Ukai.

Tried to put his time in the Rust Room and the Eon Hall into one clear sentence.

He could not.

It wasn't that it felt wrong. Just… Incomplete. Like there was something missing from the edges of the picture and no one wanted to admit it.

Ahead, Ukai's academy grew larger with each step.

The bridge met the giant platform cut from the trunk. The wood here was smooth and pale, the natural lines of growth turned into patterns that guided the eye inward.

Marks painted in deep green traced circles, grids, and symbols Raizen didn't recognize. He caught sight of claw marks embedded in some of them, as if something had tested its strength here more than once.

"Careful of the edges" the host said calmly as they stepped onto the wide expanse. "The drop is monitored, but gravity doesn't care."

Raizen took him at his word and did not walk near the sides.

"May I add… That man, Kenzo, quite some time ago, he fell down the whole tree. I was surprised to see him alive. I guess the former Phalanx are just different…"

They crossed the platform toward the main structure. Up close, the woven branches forming its outer walls were thick as pillars, their surfaces carved with flowing designs. Vines threaded through some of the openings, dotted with small, glowing buds. The air inside the arches looked slightly darker, cooler.

As they approached, Raizen could hear faint sounds from within.

A distant thud. A murmur. Something like a low, drawn-out growl that might have been a piece of machinery or might not.

Two figures in fitted uniforms stood at the archway - a man and a woman, both with stiff, upright posture and devices clipped near their hearts. Their uniforms were Ukai's colors, but with sharper lines, less flow. They watched the group approach.

The host lifted his hand in greeting.

"These are our guests from Neoshima" he said. "They have been granted provisional access."

The man looked down at a slate in his hand, eyes scanning something. The model was different. It could collapse into something smaller, that could fit into your pocket.

The woman's gaze moved smoothly over Raizen and Saffi, lingering a fraction longer on the swords at Raizen's hips.

"Names?" she asked.

"Raizen and Saffi" he answered.

She tapped the slate. A line on her screen turned green.

"Confirmed" she said. Then she looked past them, toward the interior. "Supervisor, guests have arrived."

Footsteps answered her.

A figure stepped out from the shadowed hall.

Long, curly hair. Clean posture. Eyes sharp and intelligent. Glasses. She moved with the relaxed precision of someone who had been trained to own every space she entered.

Mina.

When her gaze landed on Raizen - she stopped.

Recognition flared. Not surprise. Something closer to relief… And annoyance… And pride… All layered too quickly to read.

"Well, well, well! Look who survived!" Mina said, breath leaving her in a quiet laugh.

Saffi blinked. "You… know each other?"

Raizen nodded once. "She trained me in the Rust roo-"

Mina's hand was suddenly against his mouth.

Fast. Smooth. Not aggressive - but absolutely final.

Her eyes narrowed a fraction.

"Talk later" she murmured, close to his ear.

Raizen stilled. He understood.

The Rust Room was classified far above anything any official should know.

Saffi and the guards just assumed Mina had cut him off because he talked too casually. They didn't catch the sharpness in her tone.

Mina slowly lowered her hand, back to her composed, professional stance.

She turned her attention to Saffi.

"Mina" she introduced herself. "Supervisor here. And yes - Raizen and I have worked together before."

Her tone was easy, but Saffi noticed how close she stood to Raizen… Like she had positioned herself to intercept danger.

Mina addressed Raizen again, openly now.

"Did you follow my advice?"

Raizen nodded. "I tried."

"Hm." A very faint smile. "Good boy."

Saffi's eyebrows shot up.

Raizen's soul left his body.

"DON'T say that. EVER again" he hissed.

Then the formality returned - like a curtain dropping between faces.

"Welcome to Ukai Academy. You will see things here most people only hear rumors about."

"Exciting introduction… That's supposed to be reassuring?" Raizen exhaled, still irritated from being called a good boy.

A soft huff of amusement escaped her before she turned toward the dark arch.

"Follow me."

Raizen drew breath to ask why she was here and not in the rust ro-

A roar ripped through the building.

The floor thrummed under their feet.

Deep. Wild. Animal.

Something out there was angry.

Saffi froze, clutching her bag straps.

Even the drones paused mid-air.

Mina didn't flinch. She only looked back at Raizen, eyes locked onto his.

"This place will challenge you" she said. "And Raizen… You terrified me, personally, a good while ago. Let us see if you can terrify a beast, too.

Another roar - closer this time.

Mina tilted her head, eyes bright like she was already enjoying this.

"Try to keep up – and survive."

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