With my vision blurring at the edges, I glared at the approaching doppelgänger—my own face twisted into something cruel and hungry.

My mouth tasted like iron.

I gathered the blood pooling on my tongue… and spat it straight into his eyes.

"Kh—! What the…!"

The blood splattered across his face, and he stumbled back with a strangled growl.

Clutching at his eyes, he began slashing wildly in every direction, his movements erratic and furious.

"You—! You coward!!"

Coward?

I let out a breathless, humorless laugh.

In a real fight, there's no such thing.

When death is staring back at you, only two things matter:

Who survives.

And who doesn't.

Everything else is meaningless.

The doppelgänger staggered, blinded and thrashing.

That tiny opening was all I needed.

Ignoring the throbbing in my ribs, I forced my battered body upright and sprinted toward him.

His blade cut empty air a hair's breadth from my cheek.

I tightened my grip.

One chance.

One strike.

—Squelch.

A sickening sound echoed as my sword sank into flesh.

Warmth trickled down my hand as my blade drove deep into the doppelgänger's chest—straight through the heart.

His eyes, identical to mine yet utterly lifeless, slowly widened in disbelief.

"..."

For a moment, neither of us moved.

It was like staring at my own dying reflection.

Then his grip loosened, and his sword fell with a dull clatter.

The doppelgänger looked down at the sword lodged in his heart, his expression surprisingly calm.

"…It doesn't hurt as much as I thought."

His voice was faint—almost reflective.

As he blinked slowly, his body began breaking apart into tiny particles, scattering like dust in a weak breeze.

The fight was over.

The outcome was clear.

But watching my own face die…

Yeah, that didn't feel great.

Even as his limbs crumbled and his form dissolved, the doppelgänger lifted his head and met my eyes.

A small, peaceful smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

"Congratulations."

There was no resentment there.

No bitterness.

Only relief—like he was genuinely happy for me.

"You won."

With those final words, he smiled brighter than I ever had, and then—

He shattered.

His entire body dissolved into shimmering sand-like motes that faded into the air.

And at that exact moment, something invisible surged toward me.

A wave of energy—clean, warm, and impossibly dense—rushed into my core before I could even brace myself.

I staggered, gasping as the power flooded through me.

She had said it earlier:

If you overcome the trial, you will grow stronger.

So this…

This must be what she meant.

The energy from the vanishing doppelgänger flowed into me endlessly, settling deep within, expanding my strength in ways I couldn't yet understand.

I straightened slowly, gripping my sword as the last traces of light drifted away.

The trial was over.

And as for that energy?

It was a strange sensation—an energy unlike anything I had ever felt before.

Warm, weightless, and eerily familiar all at once.

As I closed my eyes, letting that mysterious power wash over me, a soft white glow rose around my body.

It wrapped me gently, almost tenderly, and instead of resisting…

I let myself sink into it.

I surrendered to the light.

.

.

.

.

.

When the brightness finally faded, the world shifted.

I blinked—and found myself standing in the middle of the classroom.

The same desks.

The same walls.

The same stunned faces staring at me.

"Oh? I-It's Louis!"

Lisa shot up from her seat, eyes huge.

"Where did you even go? I was so worried…!"

"I…"

I looked around, still not fully grasping what had happened.

"…I wonder where I went."

"…Huh?"

Lisa tilted her head, completely lost.

Honestly, I couldn't blame her.

The two of them must have been terrified when I vanished right after we stepped into that beam of light together.

Now that I was back, fatigue crashed into me all at once.

The exhaustion from fighting the doppelgänger, from channeling aura for the first time, from… whatever that light was—

It all hit at once.

My legs wobbled.

I staggered over to the nearest chair and sank down heavily.

Only then did I really notice the state of the room—classmates disheveled, breathing hard, their faces pale with confusion.

They seemed just as overwhelmed as I was.

And finally, the truth settled in.

I'm back.

Just realizing that made every muscle in my body loosen all at once.

The tension I had been holding finally unraveled, leaving only a quiet, shaky relief.

My magical power was completely drained, yet that strange lingering energy inside me continued to pulse quietly—as if reminding me it still existed.

The classroom was filled with low murmurs and excited whispers.

Everyone was exchanging stories about their trials, comparing close calls and near-disasters.

But the moment Lumine opened the door and stepped inside, the noise died instantly.

It was like someone pressed a mute button.

With her usual calm poise, she walked to the podium and surveyed the room.

Her eyes were sharp, almost evaluating, as they swept over each student.

"Good work, everyone."

At those words, Class C turned their attention fully toward her—some eager, some anxious, some exhausted beyond belief.

"To overcome the trials within three days without a single failure… you're much more capable than I expected."

There was still a full day left until the deadline, yet every seat in Class C was filled.

Everyone had returned.

Meaning every one of them had cleared the hidden trials she assigned.

A quiet pride rippled through the class—mixed with relief.

"Some of you," Lumine continued with a faint, amused smile, "were quite interesting."

Her eyes landed squarely on me.

Not briefly—not in passing.

Directly.

Like she was studying me.

I forced myself to hold her gaze, though I had no idea why she was looking at me like that.

Why…?

What did I even do?

I didn't understand why Lumine was so invested in me.

Why she kept watching me, evaluating me, as if expecting something.

The lingering energy inside me pulsed again, faintly.

…Was that why?

I didn't know.

And somehow, that uncertainty bothered me more than her stare itself.

There shouldn't have been any reason for Lumine and me to have any sort of connection…

And yet here she was—standing right in front of me as if fate had woven us together on purpose.

"You can all rest now."

Her voice was calm, almost casual, but the effect was immediate.

The tension that had been clinging to the students like a vice finally snapped.

"Haaah…"

Someone let out a long, shaky breath.

That single sigh was enough to break the dam—one by one, students dropped to the ground, exhausted bodies giving out all at once.

Some lay flat, others curled over their knees, but all of them looked like they had just escaped death.

Lumine walked past them without slowing, her steps steady and unhurried as she approached me.

"Congratulations," she said with a light grin. "You overcame the trial, didn't you?"

She looked far too amused for someone who had just put us through hell.

"Kukuk. I look forward to working with you," she added, stretching out a pale hand in my direction.

I stared at that hand for a moment.

Her fingers were slender, delicate even, but somehow they looked more dangerous than comforting.

Still, refusing wasn't an option.

With a shaky breath, I lifted my trembling hand and placed it in hers.

"…Looking forward to it," I replied quietly.

Her hand was colder than I expected.

Cold enough to make a chill run up my arm.

Lumine's smile widened, as if she'd sensed something amusing in my reaction.

And at that moment, one thing became painfully clear:

My life at the academy…

was definitely not going to be peaceful from here on out.

The class calmed down only after Lumine left the room.

A soft murmur rippled through the students again—quieter this time, careful.

Everyone wanted to talk, but no one dared to be loud after that presence walked out.

Lisa slid into the seat beside me, eyes still wide with worry.

"Louis… are you really okay?"

I nodded—but even I didn't fully believe it.

My body felt like a half-melted candle, and every breath rattled like my lungs were deciding whether to keep working.

But more than the exhaustion, it was the energy inside me that bothered me.

It wasn't fading.

If anything…

It felt more alive than before, circulating through my veins with calm, rhythmic pulses.

Thump…

Warm.

Stable.

Like it belonged there.

Elena leaned over the desk, whispering with the kind of curiosity that bordered on obsession.

"What was your trial like? You disappeared for hours. Did you fight a monster? Was it a puzzle? No wait—did you die and come back? You didn't, right? You didn't, right!?"

I blinked slowly at her barrage of questions.

"…Something like that."

Her eyes sparkled.

Lisa's, on the other hand, narrowed with suspicion.

"Louis… you're acting weird."

"I just need rest."

Rest.

Yeah.

That sounded heavenly.

But I will rest....even for a moment.

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