Chapter 38
Illariana Arden’s POV
A schedule had been posted for each group on the ground floor of the dormitory.
And damn.
We didn't have so much as twenty minutes of free time.
Maybe that was for the best.
At least it would keep my mind occupied—far away from thoughts of Airis—and force me to focus on myself instead.
The new schedule took effect immediately.
Our first destination was a class called Elemental Magic.
Alicia—Stasia's sister—was leading our group to the training hall.
As it turned out, each group had been assigned an upperclassman to help with the transition, making sure we actually showed up for class... or noticed when we didn't.
Gianna and Seris walked on either side of me.
The other two members of our group—Loretta and Taylor—kept to themselves, lingering several steps behind the rest of us.
“If I understand this correctly,” Seris said, “they grouped us according to our elemental affinities.”
“It's nice that most of our group are elemental mages,” Gianna replied with a gentle smile. “It makes me feel... safer.”
I couldn't have disagreed more.
Privately, I was already praying we wouldn't be paired together during practical exercises.
I still hoped our schedules would eventually split apart, giving me time to return to my room and speak with the spirits.
Unfortunately...
My prayers went unanswered.
And speaking of spirits—
Where had they disappeared to?
'd grown so used to their constant presence that their absence felt strangely unsettling.
“I feel the same way,” Seris agreed.
I listened to them in quiet surprise.
It never ceased to amaze me how people could experience the exact same circumstances...
And feel something completely different.
Other than Stasia, I didn't have anyone here I could truly call close.
Suddenly, the temperature around us dropped.
Goosebumps raced across my skin as the cold wrapped itself around my body.
“Are you feeling this too?” Loretta rubbed her shoulders as she pushed herself away from the wall and walked over to us.
I nodded, unconsciously doing the same.
Oddly enough, everyone else seemed completely unfazed by the sudden drop in temperature.
I immediately looked for Alicia.
Gone.
When had she disappeared?
And how had none of us noticed?
“It definitely got colder,” Seris agreed, exchanging a glance with Gianna.
“You don't feel cold the way we do?” I asked.
“My body doesn't really register heat,” Gianna said with a small shrug.
“And I'm an Iceflame mage.”
“I'm a fire mage, and I'm freezing,” I muttered. “I'm pretty sure my breath is fogging.”
A cloud of white escaped my lips, proving my point.
“Are we locked in here or something?”
“I don't think that's the problem.”
The voice belonged to the only person who had remained silent until now.
Taylor finally pushed himself away from the wall.
He walked toward us at an unhurried pace.
Something about him immediately put me on edge.
“So far, your magic is nothing more than a rumor,” he said calmly. “Maybe this room is waiting for you.”
His gaze drifted away from me, slowly scanning the ceiling as though searching for something.
Mine, meanwhile, settled on the scorpion perched peacefully on his shoulder.
At least it wasn't a snake.
I was absolutely terrified of snakes.
“Or maybe you could impress us with your ability,” I shot back. “No one's bothered explaining what it actually is.”
At the same time, I reached inward, searching for that familiar connection to my magic.
Silently urging it to be ready.
I wasn't about to survive a second public humiliation.
“I'll tell you,” Taylor replied, “after I see yours.”
I scoffed.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Loretta's lips had begun turning faintly blue.
“Fine,” I muttered under my breath, stepping a few paces away from the others.
Right now, I had no idea what I was capable of.
Especially after what had happened earlier.
Still, a little caution never hurt.
Drawing in a slow breath, I reached for the familiar current of power inside me.
Usually, I could find it without effort.
Usually, it answered.
Today, it felt distant.
Faint.
Almost silent.
I couldn't understand why.
Was I simply exhausted?
My gaze settled on my open palm, waiting for the tiny flame I'd summoned hundreds of times during my training with Airis.
Nothing.
Another slow breath.
I didn't want to give up.
But I already knew where this was heading.
“I guess today's just not my day,” I muttered, slipping my hands into the pockets of my loose trousers.
“To be fair,” Gianna chimed in before anyone else could speak, “Ria barely slept last night.”
No one had asked her to defend me.
With my head lowered, I walked back toward the others, too lost in my own thoughts to pay attention to the conversation unfolding around me.
What if I'd actually lost my fire?
What if the only thing left inside me were the dying embers of the magic tied to the World of Death?
I took another step.
Something slammed into me.
Hard.
The impact hurled me backward, sending me crashing into the opposite wall before I hit the floor.
“What the hell—”
The words died in my throat.
I looked up, ready to glare at whoever had done it—
And froze.
Something enormous burst from the floor in the center of the room.
Glowing.
Massive.
And unlike anything I'd ever seen.
It resembled a bear, yet its body was formed from some strange crystalline material I'd never encountered before.
For a split second, it reminded me of the constructs Miloran had created.
The creature split in two.
One of the bears swung its massive paw—
And a storm of razor-thin spikes shot straight toward me.
Instinct took over.
I threw my arms over my face.
Pathetic as it was, they were the only shield I had.
“Damn it!” Loretta shouted from somewhere across the hall.
I braced for the impact.
It never came.
Slowly, I lowered my hands.
Seris stood directly in front of me.
A wall of blue fire hung frozen in the air, holding back the barrage of spikes.
Taylor had moved beside him, already in a fighting stance.
The scorpion on his shoulder shifted restlessly while both boys strained against the force pressing toward us.
Loretta clutched her shoulder.
Blood seeped between her fingers.
Gianna stood frozen, just as stunned as I was.
“I can't hold this much longer,” Seris growled.
His boots scraped backward across the floor as the pressure forced him to give ground.
“I guess this is one of our training exercises,” Taylor said, irritation evident even in his calm voice. “Anyone have a plan?”
Pushing herself upright, Loretta flicked her wrist.
A lattice of living shadows spread over Seris's shield, reinforcing it like a second layer.
But the shadows were already beginning to crack.
The bears unleashed another volley of spikes.
“What are those spikes made of?” I asked, forcing myself back to my feet.
If I couldn't help with my magic...
Then I'd help with my brain.
“They look almost like dried branches,” Loretta said through gritted teeth.
“Can your fire do anything to them?” I asked Seris.
Right now, burning everything to the ground sounded like the perfect solution.
“My Iceflame doesn't burn,” he replied through strained breaths. “It only freezes.”
I bit the inside of my cheek.
My eyes shifted to Taylor.
A sheen of sweat glistened across his forehead.
Maybe what he'd said earlier wasn't a theory anymore.
Maybe he'd known exactly what was going to happen.
“Ria,” Seris called, his voice tightening with effort. “Try again.”
“We'll hold them off until you're ready.”
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
“What if I'm never ready?”
Loretta cried out.
The web of shadows shattered.
She collapsed to one knee, clutching her shoulder.
“I think...” she gasped. “One of the spikes is still inside.”
She winced.
“I can't access my Gift properly. It's... blocking the flow.”
My fear became something tangible.
“Ria.”
This time, Seris wasn't giving an order.
He was pleading.
His face had turned a dangerous shade of red, every muscle in his body trembling under the strain.
Panic spread through me.
I prayed that, this time...
My magic would answer.
Anastasia Lang's POV
Our first Survival class was taught by a translucent man whose feet never once touched the ground.
He looked almost exactly like the spirits illustrated in children's storybooks.
Except he was real.
And his kind was among the rarest beings in all of Istarus.
A djinn.
The stories claimed they granted wishes.
Reality was far less romantic.
Djinn were considered some of the most intelligent—and most dangerously cunning—beings in the entire universe of Noveris.
There were even whispers that they originated from the hidden world of Astaarus.
“No one knows what trials await you during this year's Selection,” the djinn said, never bothering to introduce himself.
His golden eyes swept across each of us in turn.
“Which means you'll first complete a condensed survival course. If you're lucky, it may save your life when your magic can't.”
He paused.
“Or when using it becomes your greatest mistake.”
“I thought every trial was designed to test our abilities,” Azalia said.
As a mermaid hybrid, she could assume a completely human form.
To be honest, I'd never heard of a mermaid making it into the Strongest Class before.
And I'd been following the Selection since I was eight.
“The Selection exists, first and foremost, to honor each of the Twelve Worlds,” the djinn replied.
“And not every one of them cares about your magic.”
“I think this course is a waste of time—for me, at least.”
Pria Haradas folded her arms with unmistakable confidence.
“I have perfect control over my abilities. I don't need a backup plan.”
The djinn merely smiled.
“And what if one of the trials takes your magic away?”
“That has never happened before,” Pria shot back.
“And it wouldn't even make sense.”
She absently twirled a long strand of violet hair around one finger.
“The Selection is supposed to reassure the people of Noveris that they're protected. Every year, stronger mages are born. Every generation surpasses the last.”
“Perhaps.”
The djinn's golden eyes gleamed with quiet amusement.
“But the Novers have never taken part in designing the Selection before.”
Silence settled over the room.
“You know something, don't you?” I asked before I could stop myself.
The words had already slipped out.
The djinn's smile widened.
But he never answered.
Maybe...
That was answer enough.
Illariana Arden’s POV
Hairline cracks raced across Seris's blue barrier with the speed of lightning.
My heart lurched.
Then pounded even harder.
The familiar warmth stirred deep inside me.
Slowly.
Steadily.
Climbing toward my hands, just as it always had whenever I summoned even the smallest flame.
For one hopeful second, I braced myself to see it.
Nothing.
The flow faltered.
It simply...
Stopped.
Damn it.
How was that even possible?
A frustrated scream clawed at my throat, but I forced it back down.
One more try.
Again.
The warmth rose through me, filling every part of my body until I could almost feel the fire breathing beneath my skin.
“Seris!”
Gianna's voice cut through the room.
Then his.
The barrier gave way.
Several spikes broke through Taylor's shield and shot straight toward Seris.
And that was the moment my fire awakened.
Wild.
Fierce.
Unrestrained.
It pulsed with emotion, refusing to belong to anyone but itself.
With every ounce of control I had left, I forced the flames toward the invisible barrier Taylor was still desperately holding together.
The instant they touched it—
The spikes ignited.
One after another.
Each burst into flame before falling harmlessly to the floor.
Not a single one reached us.
My fire didn't spread wildly.
Instead, it curled upward, forming the shape of a blazing crown—
The very same crown Loretta had shown us only hours earlier.
Only brighter.
Prouder.
As if it were declaring,
I can do that too.
And I can do it even better.
It was...
Strange.
I'd never felt my fire carry such unmistakable arrogance before.
When the last spike burned away and my flames finally began to fade, slow applause echoed through the hall.
Eugene and Miloran stood at the entrance.
One looked as calm and unreadable as ever.
The other wore a crooked grin I'd never seen before.
******
About twenty minutes later, a pair of healers arrived.
They looked nothing like Sulfur, whom I'd met on my first day.
Instead of flowing white robes, they wore dark brown uniforms that closely resembled our training gear.
The female healer examined Loretta's shoulder.
The male healer had already moved on to Seris, carefully removing the spikes lodged beneath his skin.
“Not bad,” Miloran said as he and Eugene approached us.
“Not bad?” I folded my arms across my chest. “That was dangerous.”
“It was,” Eugene replied evenly. “And it will remain dangerous until you learn to separate your emotions from your magic.”
I had no argument against that.
He was right.
Then Eugene's attention shifted to Taylor.
His eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.
“Your observational skills are impressive,” he said. “You recognized the trap immediately.”
There was no admiration in his voice.
No approval.
Only cold...
Suspicion.
"And your control over your magic surpasses that of every other first-year assigned to the Strongest Class," Miloran added.
The two of them sounded so alike that, without even realizing it, I found myself studying them more closely.
The same lean noses.
The same eyes.
Even the shape of their faces was remarkably similar.
Could they be related?
"I disclosed my additional training in my file," Taylor replied calmly. "Beyond what your representative provided."
My gaze shifted to him.
Had his powers awakened early too...
Just like Kaeron's?
And why was I only now beginning to notice how many hidden connections surrounded me?
"Or are you simply jealous of my abilities?" Taylor asked, a crooked grin spreading across his face.
It completely shattered the image I'd formed of him until now.
Neither Eugene nor Miloran responded.
In fact...
The two of them had been acting strangely from the very beginning.
"Your Elemental Magic classes will last two hours, three times a day," Eugene said, meeting each of our gazes in turn. "We need to be certain you can control your abilities before the Selection begins."
"So every Elemental Magic class comes with a pair of healers?" Loretta asked, raising an eyebrow. Judging by the way she moved, they'd already patched her up.
"If you'd prefer," Eugene replied with the faintest hint of a smile, "you're welcome to heal yourselves."
The silence that followed somehow made the remark even more unsettling.