The day passed quietly—too quietly, in Brent's opinion. He expected something—maybe another insult, maybe more stares—but nothing came. Not a word from Kallin. Not a shove in the corridor. Not even a crackling spark flung behind his back.
Just silence.
By nightfall, Brent was back in the library, seated at his usual corner table, the Forms of Forgotten Poweropen before him. The new page it revealed after completing the trial shimmered with pale gold ink.
Radiant Thread – Lv. 1
A minor thread of pure light. Restores small injuries. Can be woven into greater formations.
Below it, in faint text, glowed a line Brent hadn't seen before:
Next Trial: The Flame Resists the Storm.
He frowned. "What does—?"
The lamps flickered.
Then—footsteps. Fast. Angry. Close.
Before Brent could turn, a boot slammed into the side of his table, knocking the book to the floor. He scrambled back, eyes wide as three shadows stepped into the lanternlight.
Kallin. His face twisted in a snarl.
Jace and Merrit flanked him, both with clenched fists, their palms already glowing faintly with crackling heat and wind.
"You think you're clever, huh?" Kallin hissed. "Walking around like you matter. Like you didn't just humiliate me in front of half the courtyard."
"I didn't humiliate you," Brent said slowly. "You did that all by yourself."
The punch came faster than Brent could dodge.
White exploded in his vision. He hit the bookshelf behind him with a thud, books raining down. His ears rang. His knees buckled.
"Initiating combat protocol…" the Flamebound Core whispered in his mind.
[Defensive Instinct Triggered – Light Shell: Passive Barrier Activated]
A golden shimmer sparked across his skin just as Merrit flung a gust of wind toward him—hard and sharp like blades.
The wind collided with the barrier and dispersed in a flash of light, but it knocked Brent sideways. His hand brushed the book on the floor.
Then he felt it.
Heat. Power.
The Flame.
He grabbed the book, and his chest ignited with light—spiral glyph glowing through his shirt, radiant lines tracing along his arms.
"I don't want to fight you," he said, pushing to his feet.
"But you will," Kallin sneered, gathering a sphere of crackling, unstable lightning between his hands.
Brent raised his own. "Don't do this."
Kallin launched the bolt.
Brent didn't have time to think—only react.
He raised both hands, instinct guiding him. Light erupted from his palms, forming a radiant shield. The lightning hit it dead-on—and rebounded.
Straight at Kallin.
The explosion was blinding.
Kallin screamed.
When the light faded, he was on the ground—convulsing, his right arm blackened and sparking, twisted in an unnatural angle. The air reeked of ozone and seared flesh.
Jace and Merrit backed away in horror.
"Kallin!" one of them shouted.
Brent stood frozen, light fading from his hands. He didn't move. Couldn't breathe.
He hadn't meant to hurt him. He was defendinghimself. But the power… it had answered too fast, too strong.
Then he dropped to his knees beside Kallin, hands shaking.
"System—use Radiant Thread!" Brent yelled aloud.
[Radiant Thread – ACTIVATED]
Golden light flowed from his palms, weaving through Kallin's arm, stalling the spread of the burn, cooling the scorched skin. The damage slowed—but the limb trembled on the edge of ruin.
"It's not enough," Brent whispered. "I can't fix this."
"Not alone," the system replied. "But you've saved what could have been lost."
Voices echoed down the corridor. Teachers. Healers. Students.
Jace and Merrit ran.
Brent stayed, pressing light into the wound, even as it flickered weakly beneath his hands.
When the medics arrived, they shoved him aside, and Brent collapsed against the wall, eyes wide, heart thundering.
[Trial Complete: The Flame Resists the Storm]
Reward: Formation Acquired – Guardian's Circle (Lv. 1): Defensive Ward for self and allies.
Flame Resonance: 38%
But it didn't feel like victory.
Not with Kallin screaming in pain, not with the scent of burning still clinging to his skin, not with the knowledge that he had done that—whether by accident or not.
This was power.
And power, even light, could still destroy.