Chapter — The Unintended Resonance
A month passed.
The world no longer felt unfamiliar—just different.
Luke's days fell into a strange new rhythm.
School on weekdays.
Guild training on weekends.
Dungeons appeared occasionally, always low-ranked for now, always controlled.
People talked about aura the way they once talked about weather—constantly, casually, as if it had always been there.
Luke adapted.
On the surface, he was still the same quiet student.
An Average One-Star.
A boy who walked home alone after school, hands in his pockets, eyes calm.
But inside, something was changing.
That evening, Luke was walking home as usual when a familiar sound reached his ears.
Music.
It drifted softly through the street—a song he loved, playing from a small café near the corner. The melody was gentle, layered with emotion, the kind that lingered in the chest long after it ended.
Luke stopped.
He didn't know why—his feet just refused to move.
He stood there, eyes half-closed, listening. The world around him faded: the footsteps, the distant voices, the hum of the city. For a brief moment, it felt like the old days—before aura, before systems, before expectations.
Inside his bag, Auru stirred.
Something's wrong.
Auru felt it first.
A subtle pressure, like a deep current shifting beneath still water.
"Luke—" she tried to warn him.
But it was too late.
The air pulsed.
Not violently.
Not explosively.
A wave—soft, warm, and wide—spread outward from Luke's position.
A healing aura burst.
Invisible to the eye, but undeniable in effect.
People nearby froze.
Someone with a strained shoulder suddenly felt relief.
A student with unstable aura felt it stabilize.
Even weak aura users felt their energy grow clearer, stronger, calmer.
Gasps echoed through the street.
"What was that?"
"My aura—did it just… strengthen?"
"Did you feel that?"
Luke's heart dropped.
He realized instantly what had happened.
Control. Now.
He suppressed his aura with everything he had, pulling it inward like tightening a fist around light. The warmth faded as quickly as it had appeared.
No alarms.
No system messages.
No government drones.
Just confusion.
Luke lowered his head and walked away—slowly, carefully—blending into the crowd before anyone could focus on him.
No one followed.
No one suspected.
But the unease clung to him like a shadow.
He reached a nearby park and sat on a bench beneath the dim glow of a streetlamp. His breathing was steady, but his thoughts weren't.
After a moment, Auru emerged quietly from his bag, hovering near his shoulder.
"That was my fault," she said softly.
Luke looked at her. "Explain."
"When you listened to the music," Auru continued, "your aura resonated with it. Your emotions synchronized—comfort, nostalgia, calm. Your aura didn't just respond… it amplified."
Luke clenched his fists.
"So my aura reacts to emotion?"
"Yes," Auru replied. "Strongly. Especially to things you love."
Luke leaned back, staring at the sky through the branches above.
"That kind of power… I didn't even try."
Auru nodded. "That burst wasn't attack-based. It was enhancement. Healing. Support. You strengthened others without realizing it."
Luke swallowed.
A power that could raise others' aura.
If the government noticed…
If guilds learned…
If the system reacted…
"I need better control," Luke said quietly.
"Yes," Auru agreed. "Not suppression. Understanding."
Luke stood up.
The walk home felt heavier than usual.
That night, in his room, Luke sat at his desk, feeding Auru small snacks out of habit. She didn't need them—but she accepted them anyway, smiling.
"This world keeps testing me," Luke muttered. "School. Guilds. Dungeons. Now this."
Auru floated closer. "You're adapting. That's why it keeps responding."
Luke exhaled slowly.
"I just want to live normally."
Auru looked at him gently.
"And you are. You're just learning what 'normal' means now."
Luke didn't answer.
But deep down, he knew the truth.
His power wasn't just dangerous because it was strong.
It was dangerous because it reacted to who he was.
And that meant hiding forever wouldn't be enough.
End of chapter.