It turned out the hearing wasn't called a hearing.
The Academy referred to it as a tactical clarification, which for the students meant exactly the same thing, sit still, answer questions, and hope you weren't accused of anything.
Rian stood in a stone chamber far too orderly for a building this old. A long table separated the students from the three instructors seated across from them. Tall windows behind the instructors let the morning light fall in straight beams, like lines of judgment.
Kael lounged in his chair as if he were waiting for lunch.
Dax looked like he belonged in an arena, not squeezed into a narrow seat.
Mira had seemed annoyed from the start.
Lyra sat the calmest of them all, though her fingers were tightly clasped together.
The instructor in the middle opened a crystal file.
"Very well. We'll begin with something simple. Who first noticed the change in aura patterns before the second fracture appeared?"
None of the Class B students present answered.
The instructor's gaze shifted to Rian.
Rian let out a quiet breath. "I did."
"How?"
"I… felt it was different. The pattern was too stable."
The instructor on the right crossed his arms. "You're a new student. You haven't even passed the basic aura-sensing test yet."
"That's correct."
"So on what experience did you base your conclusion about pattern stability?"
Rian fell silent for a moment. Not because he lacked an answer—but because none of his answers would sound reasonable. "I just knew it felt wrong," he finally said.
Kael glanced toward him. "Very scientific answer."
Mira nudged him lightly.
The middle instructor didn't look satisfied, but he couldn't find an immediate flaw either.
"Very well. Now about the symbol."
The room tightened slightly.
"You said you had seen the same symbol in the tower?"
"Yes."
"When?"
"During orientation. On the inner wall."
The instructor on the left wrote something down.
"There are no records of any symbol in the public areas of the tower."
Kael murmured—loud enough to be heard,
"That means there are two possibilities. He hallucinated… or the Academy's sloppy."
No one laughed.
The middle instructor closed his file. "The clarification is complete. For now, yesterday's event will be considered a training incident involving a dimensional anomaly. No punishment will be issued."
Dax immediately exhaled. "Thank goodness."
"But," the instructor continued, "student access to the tower is restricted until the investigation is complete."
Mira sighed. "Well, of course."
Lyra raised her hand slightly. "Sir… if the symbol really is there, what does it mean?"
The instructor studied her for a moment before answering. "It means we hope you were mistaken."
The answer reassured no one.
The moment they left the room, the atmosphere shifted.
Dax rolled his shoulders. "I was more scared sitting in there than fighting that monster."
Kael yawned. "I was more afraid they'd assign us a reflective essay."
Mira turned to Rian. "You're sure the symbol's in the tower?"
"I'm sure."
"How sure?"
"As sure as you are that Kael will say something sarcastic every five minutes."
Kael raised a finger. "Four minutes, actually."
Lyra looked at Rian carefully. "You want to check again, don't you?"
Rian didn't answer immediately. The tower stood not far from the academy's central courtyard. From here it was clearly visible—tall, silent, and guarded by two gate sentries since morning.
"Access is restricted," Mira said.
"For students," Kael replied.
"Which means if we get caught, we'll be cleaning storage rooms until graduation."
Dax shrugged. "I got punished like that at my old school. Not that bad."
Mira stared at him. "We're not talking about normal storage. This is an elite academy. The storage probably holds dragon bones or something."
Lyra looked at Rian. "You want to go tonight?"
Rian finally answered. "Yes."
None of them looked surprised.
Kael even smiled faintly. "I knew we'd end up here."
Night arrived with a colder wind than usual.
Ironcrest was never truly dark—blue crystal lamps lined the outer corridors—but the area around the tower still felt like a shadow deliberately preserved. They gathered behind the training building.
Dax carried a small bag filled with rope and metal hooks. Mira brought a dimmable light crystal. Lyra carried… far too many medical supplies for a sneaking mission. Kael brought only himself.
"You didn't bring anything?" Mira asked.
"I brought intelligence and charm."
"Neither has been proven."
"Cruel."
Rian watched the tower. "Only two guards. They patrol every seven minutes."
Kael lifted an eyebrow. "You've been observing?"
"Since this afternoon."
"Sometimes I forget you look relaxed but are actually terrifying."
Rian didn't argue.
They waited until both guards moved toward the eastern side.
"Now," Rian whispered.
Dax moved first, vaulting over the low garden fence. Kael followed lightly, almost soundless. Mira and Lyra came after, while Rian stayed last to make sure the area was clear.
Up close, the tower felt different.
Its walls weren't just stone—the surface was filled with faint lines like frozen streams of aura. Even in the dark, the structure felt… alive.
"The main door's guarded," Mira whispered.
"We're not using the main door," Rian replied.
He pointed to the tower's left side, where a narrow gap lay between the main structure and an old storage annex.
"During orientation, I saw a service door there."
Kael smiled. "Of course you did."
They slipped into the gap. The small door was indeed there—made of old metal with a simple mechanical lock.
Dax looked at it. "I can break it."
"Don't," Mira said quickly.
"If it makes noise, we're done."
Kael knelt before the lock. "Luckily, I used to… experiment."
"Experiment?" Lyra asked.
"With avoiding curfew."
A few seconds later, a soft click sounded.
Kael glanced back proudly. "See? Informal education is useful too."
Inside, the tower was far quieter than outside.
A spiral staircase rose through the center of a vast cylindrical chamber, while the walls were covered in faint engravings visible only when light struck at certain angles.
Mira dimmed her crystal. "Where's the symbol?" she whispered.
Rian walked slowly along the wall, his eyes tracing lines that resembled old fractures. "I saw it on the second floor… near the inner window arch."
They climbed without a sound. Every step felt too loud in their own ears.
The moment they reached the second floor, Rian stopped. "Something's different," he murmured.
"What?" Lyra asked.
"When I came here before… this place felt empty."
Kael nodded slightly.
"And now?"
"…Now it feels like someone just passed through."
That sentence silenced everyone.
Mira slowly lit the wall. Engravings emerged one by one from the shadows. Circles. Lines.Repeating patterns.
And in one section—almost hidden behind a curve in the stone—
The symbol.
A circle split by a vertical line.
Lyra inhaled softly. "That's—"
"The same one," Rian said.
Dax stepped closer. "That doesn't look like a random scratch."
"It's not," Mira replied. "It's part of a pattern."
Kael touched the wall near the symbol. "And this part's new."
"New?" Lyra asked.
"Yes. The stone around it's smoother. Like someone… cleaned it."
An uneasy feeling tightened in Rian's chest.
"That means someone else has been looking for it."
And right then—
Footsteps sounded from below. Everyone froze.
Not a guard's stride.
It was slow, measured—like someone who knew exactly where he was going.
Mira extinguished the light.
A figure's shadow appeared on the spiral stairs.
Tall. Cloaked in an instructor's robe. He stopped on the first floor… then looked up.
"If you're done sightseeing," he said flatly, "perhaps you'd like to explain why students are wandering inside the tower after curfew."
Dax whispered, "…Do we run?"
Kael shook his head. "Too late."
Rian swallowed.
The instructor began climbing the stairs. And somehow, what made Rian most uneasy wasn't that they'd been caught—
but the feeling that the man had known they would come all along.