Aria led them through a long corridor before stopping in a wide chamber lined with glowing panels. Each panel displayed a number, and beneath each one sat a small black box holding metallic keys.
She turned to face them.
"This is the dorm assignment hall," she said. "You'll be living in dorms of four. You eat together. Train together. Fight together. If one of you falls behind, the rest will feel it."
Her gaze lingered on them a moment longer than necessary.
"Learn to function as a team," she continued. "Or you won't last long enough for it to matter."
No one spoke.
The silence that followed felt heavier than her words.
Aria tapped her tablet. The panels flickered, then four numbers lit up at once—112, 113, 114, and 115.
"These are your dorms," she said. "Keys are coded to your biometrics. Lose it, and you'll answer for it."
Felix stepped forward immediately, reaching for the box beneath 112. He grabbed a key and flashed Raze a grin. "Looks like we're stuck together."
Raze followed and took a key from the same box. He didn't react. Felix doing something like that was hardly a surprise.
Liam moved next, his hands shaking as he reached in. He nearly dropped the key before catching it and pulling back, clutching it like it might disappear.
Beatrix stepped forward last. She took the final key for 112 without hesitation, her expression unreadable.
Aria nodded once. "Dorm 112 is yours. From this point on, you operate as one. Keep that in mind. Whether you succeed or fail won't be decided individually."
She gestured toward a soldier waiting near the end of the hall. "That escort will take you to your quarters. Settle in. Training begins tomorrow at nine."
Without another word, she turned and walked away.
Felix leaned closer to Raze, lowering his voice. "Dorm 112. Has a nice ring to it."
"I guess," Raze replied.
They followed the soldier down another corridor until they stopped in front of a tall metallic door marked 112. A scanner beside it blinked softly.
"Keys on the scanner," the soldier said.
Felix slapped his key against the pad first. The door slid open with a quiet hum.
The dorm was larger than Raze expected.
Four beds lined the walls, each with its own desk and locker. A wide window overlooked the academy grounds far below, lights glowing in the distance.
Felix walked in like he already owned the place and tossed his bag onto the bed closest to the window. "Not bad. I can work with this."
Raze chose the bed farthest from him.
Liam lingered near the doorway, eyes darting between the beds before he quietly took one near the corner.
Beatrix placed her bag neatly on the bed closest to the door. She sat down, scanning the room once, as if measuring distances and exits.
Felix leaned back on his bed, hands folded behind his head. "Guess this is home."
"For now," Beatrix said calmly.
The grin slipped from Felix's face for half a second.
Raze sat down on his bed, rolling the key between his fingers. "It's better than I expected."
"Better than nothing," Felix replied. "So what do you think? Lucky draw?"
Raze glanced at him. "Depends how you define lucky."
Liam hesitated, then spoke quietly. "Do you think tomorrow will be worse than today?"
"Yes," Beatrix answered immediately.
Liam swallowed and didn't respond.
Felix chuckled softly. "Good. Would've been boring otherwise."
Raze leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "Harder training… and I don't even have an awakening."
Felix tilted his head. "Maybe. But you don't move like someone without one."
Beatrix studied Raze more closely this time.
"If you truly don't have an awakening, you'll struggle here. More than most."
Raze nodded once. "Yeah."
His thoughts drifted to the system. The skill.
The room slowly settled into silence.
Felix stretched and stood. "I'm sleeping."
Liam was already under the covers, pulled tight. Beatrix turned away without another word.
Raze waited until the room was quiet.
Then he checked his system.
[User: Raze Zaden]
[Race: Half-ling]
[Level: 2]
[0 / 200 EXP]
Raze stared at the numbers.
The requirement had doubled.
"So that's how it works," he murmured. "The higher I go, the harder it gets."
Another notification appeared.
[Congratulations! You have reached Level 2.]
[You have gained 3 stat points.]
[New skill available.]
The system had been silent for days. Almost like it had been waiting.
Now it was responding.
Raze rubbed his face slowly. "Was this you, Theodore… or did you just open the door?"
He opened the skill tab.
[New Skill Unlocked: Piercing Slash]
[Effect: Releases a black-and-white line of condensed energy from the user's hands.]
[Range: 7 meters.]
Raze stared at it for a long moment.
Then he smiled.
"Finally."
He closed the system, turned onto his side, and pulled the blanket over himself.
Tomorrow would decide how far this really went.