Chapter 16: Burning Seal

The crest had barely touched Koda’s belt when the brand on his shoulder burned hot, like someone pressing a hot thumb into his flesh. Heat crawled toward his collarbone in a thin line.

Above the camp, the crack in the sky was stitching itself shut. The wind dragging ash toward it died, leaving a faint scar across the smoke and hundreds of conscripts struggling back to their feet.

Koda’s brand kept glowing.

Two nearby conscripts had already noticed.

The officer who had just awarded him the crest stopped mid-turn. His gaze settled on Koda’s shoulder, and his eyes narrowed.

Koda forced his expression to remain blank.

The Devouring Origin stirred. It wanted to reach into the mark and swallow the energy pouring through it. One pull would stop the burning, and the seal would go dark. Then they’d know something was wrong.

Koda suppressed the hunger. Behind his back, his claws dug into his palm, giving him something else to focus on.

"Vanguard Leader," the officer said. "Your seal is burning. Care to explain?"

Koda gave a tired shrug. "It started when the sky opened, sir. A few others felt something too." He nodded toward a demon rubbing his shoulder nearby. "Mine just hasn’t stopped."

The officer glanced at the other demon before returning his attention to Koda.

"Have you interfered with the mark? Cut it? Burned it? Attempted to resist its influence?"

"No, sir. I’ve seen what happens to those who try."

"And yet yours is the only one still glowing."

"I wish I had an explanation for you, sir."

The officer studied him carefully, watching his posture, breathing, and the sweat gathering along his neck.

Koda could tell the man wasn’t convinced. Unfortunately, suspicion wasn’t proof, and the officer seemed disciplined enough not to make an accusation he couldn’t support.

Beside Koda, Serah shifted half a pace closer, her hand resting near her blade.

Varkos moved too, angling his shoulder forward as his eyes settled on the officer’s hands.

’Don’t. Both of you, please don’t.’ Koda almost said that out.

Neither said a word, but their readiness was obvious.

And since he noticed, the officer did too. His expression hardened slightly.

"Listen carefully, Vanguard Leader. Report to the quartermaster, then the medical tents, before nightfall. Have your seal examined."

"Understood, sir."

"And if your mark does anything else I cannot account for, I’ll treat it as sabotage. I don’t care how well you performed in the trial. The array doesn’t make exceptions for champions."

Koda lowered his head respectfully. "I understand."

The officer held his gaze for another moment before turning away.

Koda didn’t unclench his fist until the man’s footsteps had faded into the noise of the camp.

Varkos let out a low growl. "I don’t like him."

"At least he wasn’t overly aggressive," Koda said quietly. "Let’s get out of here before he finds a reason to come back."

They walked until the arena was little more than a dark shape behind them. The heat in Koda’s shoulder had faded to a dull ache, but a constant pressure remained beneath the skin.

He stopped in the shadow of a supply wagon and closed his eyes.

Carefully, he reached for the energy flowing from his brand and nudged the positional signal. It was the smallest adjustment he’d ever attempted.

The array answered immediately.

It felt like touching a still pond and sensing something enormous turn beneath the surface. A cold ripple raced back along the connection, and the pressure beneath his skin sharpened.

Koda withdrew at once. The ripple faded, leaving him with a throbbing shoulder and a distinctly unpleasant feeling that something on the other end had noticed him.

"That was fast," he muttered.

Serah glanced at him. "What happened?"

"The array reacted almost immediately. Yesterday, it barely noticed when I interfered with the signal. Now it responds in a breath."

"You think the fracture changed it?"

"Either that, or the entire system recalibrated when the sky opened." He rubbed his shoulder. "Whatever happened, I can’t risk testing it again until things settle down."

"Can you still bend the signal?"

"A little. But if I push, it pushes back." He paused, feeling the strain around his Core Seed. "And the constant flow through the mark is putting pressure on my core. I need to avoid unnecessary exertion."

Serah studied him.

"Then stop treating this like something you have to handle alone."

Koda opened his eyes. "Huh?"

"No, listen." Her voice remained quiet, but there was no mistaking the firmness behind it. "If they discover something wrong with your seal, they’ll start asking questions about the people around you. They’ll investigate who you’ve been with, and who might know something."

She folded her arms.

"We’re already involved, whether we like it or not. Pretending otherwise won’t protect us."

"I’m not trying to shut you out."

"Then stop acting as though you have to carry every problem yourself."

Koda fell silent.

Serah looked away briefly before meeting his eyes again.

"I’m not leaving," she said. "I’m telling you that I understand what this could cost us, and I’m staying anyway. We’ll manage it together."

For once, Koda couldn’t think of a clever response.

"Thank you," he said.

Serah gave him a tired look. "Just don’t get caught."

"I’ll do my best."

"Your best had better be good enough."

A stone struck the base of a nearby post.

Varkos had kicked it there, his horns glowing faintly as he stared into the darkness.

"Threatening us over a burning shoulder," he muttered. "None of us asked to be branded. They throw us into a pit, make us fight for food, then threaten to punish us."

He clenched his fists.

"I don’t mind fighting. I don’t even mind killing when I have to. But I hate that they’ve already decided we’re disposable."

Koda watched him carefully.

"This stays between us," Koda said. "All three of us. No discussing the seal, the array, or anything strange we noticed when the sky opened."

"Agreed," Serah said.

Varkos hesitated before giving a firm nod.

---

The quartermaster was not a problem. The lacquered armor, extra soul stones, and improved rations had been promised, and Koda’s Core Seed needed every advantage it could get.

The medical tent was another matter.

An infernal medic would know how to examine the flow of energy through a demon’s body. If they inspected his seal closely, they might notice that its core was thinner than it should be.

He considered smoothing out the irregularity before reporting for examination, then abandoned the idea.

He’d just felt the array react to the smallest adjustment.

Touching it again might provoke a stronger response, and the officer would have his proof.

’I’ll leave it alone, for now. A flawed seal is better than one that suddenly looks freshly repaired.’

It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was the best option he had.

The crest at his belt seemed heavier with every step.

Rank brought resources, but it also brought attention with it. From now on, every injury and every unusual decision could be scrutinized.

He rounded the corner of the last shed and nearly walked into someone.

"Vanguard Leader," the stranger said pleasantly.

Koda stopped.

The man was a junior officer, lean and young for his rank, with armor worn thin at the edges and a face that was easy to forget. His smile was small, relaxed, and entirely unremarkable.

That alone made Koda wary.

"I was hoping I’d catch you alone," the officer continued. "Congratulations on your promotion, by the way. Not everyone manages to leave the arena with their squad intact."

"We were fortunate, sir."

"Fortunate?" The officer chuckled. "Perhaps. Though I watched your fight with Gorg. You seemed to know exactly where to strike."

Koda shrugged. "He left obvious openings."

"True. Most conscripts are too busy trying to kill their opponents to notice those."

The officer glanced toward Koda’s shoulder.

"And then there was that little incident at the platform."

Koda kept his expression neutral. "The seal reacted to the dimensional disturbance. The senior officer witnessed it himself."

"Of course he did." The junior officer turned a ring around his finger. "Which is why you’ll be visiting the medical tents tonight."

"That’s the order, yes."

"They’re thorough in there. They examine everything down to the minute details. A seal that continues glowing after a dimensional disturbance might attract a few questions."

He paused, watching Koda’s face.

"Or it might be recorded as a routine response to the disturbance. Nothing unusual worth investigating."

Koda felt his stomach tighten. ’He knows? Or he suspects, and he’s trying to make me believe he knows.’

"And what would it take to make that happen?" Koda asked.

The officer’s smile widened slightly.

"A favor."

"What kind of favor?"

"Nothing difficult, really. And, not today." He shrugged as though the matter were trivial. "But someday, I might need something from you. When that day comes, I’d like to know you’ll remember who helped you tonight."

Koda studied him. "You’re asking me to owe you a favor without telling me what I’ll be expected to do."

"When you put it that way, it sounds rather unpleasant."

"Is there another way to put it?"

"Several, I’m sure. I’m simply trying to be helpful."

"By offering to interfere with an official medical report?"

"By offering to ensure that a routine incident remains routine."

"Those sound like the same thing to me."

The officer laughed softly. "You’re a cautious one, aren’t you?"

"I’ve found it keeps me alive."

"An admirable habit. Especially in this camp."

Koda didn’t return the smile. "If your help is as harmless as you suggest, why not tell me your name and exactly what you’re offering?"

For the first time, the officer’s smile faltered; not enough to reveal anger, but enough to confirm that Koda had touched something sensitive.

Then it returned. "Because I prefer to leave the details until they’re necessary."

"Convenient."

"Very."

Koda considered his options.

On one side was an easy way out. On the other was a debt to a man he barely knew, who refused to explain what he expected in return and had approached him alone on the night his secret was most vulnerable.

It might be genuine help, or a leverage.

Or it might be a trap wearing a friendly face.

The junior officer waited patiently, turning his ring as furnace light flickered across his armor.

Koda finally spoke. "What if I refuse?"

"Then you visit the medical tents as ordered, and the medics write whatever they believe is appropriate... But it would be quite unfortunate if their report creates problems for you."

The man sounded genuinely sympathetic, but beneath was a veiled threat.

That made Koda trust him even less.

"I’ll think about your offer," Koda said.

"Of course. That’s all I ask."

The officer stepped aside, leaving the path clear.

"Enjoy your promotion, Vanguard Leader. I suspect you’ll find that rank opens quite a few doors."

Koda watched him walk away, a murderous intent flashing through his mind, causing his hands to twitch repeatedly. But he shook his head and clenched his fists tightly.