Chapter 7 – Formation Trial
The bell tower rang five times—loud, sharp, and urgent.
Kael stepped into the central courtyard, where students were already gathering beneath the blue banners of the Arcanum Crest. Instructors stood on a raised platform, arms crossed, watching the crowd settle.
Above them, a single word shimmered in golden letters:
"Formation Trial."
Instructor Verdan's voice boomed across the courtyard. "This week marks the beginning of your first team-based evaluation. You'll be grouped in units of four for a simulated expedition. It will test strategy, synergy, leadership—and magic adaptability."
Groans, murmurs, and awkward glances echoed through the crowd.
Lyra shifted nervously beside Kael. "Please don't put me with the nobles again. Last time they tried to use me as bait."
Kael smirked. "I think you could've handled it."
She narrowed her eyes playfully. "You think I can handle everything."
He shrugged. "Am I wrong?"
"Teams have been pre-selected," Verdan continued. "Your performance so far, personalities, affinities, and… incompatibilities were taken into account. If you disagree, complain to your pillow."
Scrolls floated down from above, unfurling with magical glow.
Kael searched for his name.
Team 9:
Kael Vayen
Lyra Asthel
Juno Frell
Elith Raan
He blinked. "Wait—Elith? From the dorm wing?"
"She's terrifying," Juno muttered, appearing beside him. "Like a hawk made of wind and sarcasm."
"I don't mind," Lyra said. "Better than another meathead fire mage."
They gathered under their assigned banner.
Elith joined them without a word. Her dark green cloak swirled faintly, and her eyes scanned them all with silent calculation.
"You good with wind magic?" Kael asked.
She nodded. "Speed, movement. Support."
"Perfect," Kael said. "I'll talk tactics tonight."
Her eyes met his—just a flicker. A subtle glint of respect.
"I'll listen," she said quietly. "If you don't waste my time."
Elsewhere, under the crimson banner of Team 2, Princess Selene Ardentis stood with three elite nobles.
One, a tall boy with icy white hair and piercing eyes, noticed her distracted gaze.
"Still watching the Blink boy?" he sneered.
Selene didn't answer.
"You can't be serious. His magic is barely above transport level."
She turned slowly, eyes calm and cold.
"And yet he's passed every trial with merit. Without favor. Without power."
A pause.
Then, softer: "I admire that."
The boy's smile faltered.
That evening, in the training grounds, Kael drew diagrams in the dirt again.
This time, the entire team watched.
"We don't need brute strength," he said. "We have me for repositioning. Elith for control. Lyra's good with mid-range burst. Juno's defense. If we can force the enemy into terrain disadvantages, I can trigger trap markers or pull them into exposed zones."
Lyra frowned. "You make it sound so easy."
"It's not," Kael replied. "But we're not winning by being predictable. We win by being smarter."
Elith actually smiled. "I like this plan."
Juno raised a hand. "Can I vote for a nap-based strategy instead?"
"No," the group said in unison.
Late that night.
Kael was alone again, practicing with chalk markers and Blink runes on broken stone slabs.
He tried something new.
Mark. Blink.
Instead of teleporting himself—he tried to shift a loose pebble across the floor.
Nothing.
He tried again.
This time, the pebble vanished for a flicker—and reappeared, two feet away.
He staggered, breath hitched.
It worked.
It drained almost all his current mana, but…
He had just teleported an object.
Kael smiled to himself in the dark.