Chapter 18: Results of A Month of Training

The floating training platform was alive with the sounds of combat.

After a month inside the academy, every student had grown stronger. Weapons clashed. Mana flared. The air hummed with the constant low roar of power. Arthur stood in the center of the arena, black hair slightly messy, training uniform torn in a few places from the sparring.

He had learned quickly that the Heavenfall Cyclone was not something he could use casually anymore. A single full activation drained his peak Level 2 mana pool so completely that his Mana Skin shattered and he would be left floating in the sky for hours. The Grimoire had been generous, but it had not been kind.

He adjusted his grip on the training blade and spoke in a low voice.

"I said I wasn’t holding back."

The student opposite him was a Tier 3 fire Grimoire holder named Kael. He had been one of the first to mock Arthur’s "waste" Grimoire in the Hall of Binding. Now the same boy looked nervous, sweat already beading on his forehead.

"You’re still too flashy," Kael grunted. "I can feel your wind affinity even without the blade. Let’s keep it clean."

Arthur smiled thinly. "Clean? You started this."

He charged.

The fight was short but brutal. Arthur moved like a storm wearing a man’s skin. Every step left faint trails of compressed wind behind him. He dodged Kael’s flame blade with effortless grace, closed the distance in two strides, and slammed a palm strike into the boy’s chest. Mana Skin coated the impact, turning the hit into a precise, non-lethal blow that still sent Kael skidding across the stone floor.

Kael rolled to his feet, face pale. "That... that’s not normal for a Tier 1."

Arthur didn’t answer. He simply pressed the advantage. The wind affinity he had fused with his body made his movements feel weightless and fast. He was already at a level most students would spend years reaching.

Talia Vane watched from the edge of the platform, arms crossed, a proud smile hidden behind her usually stern expression. She had seen him grow since the first day. The way he moved now, the control, the quiet confidence — it was nothing like the desperate Fringe boy she had met in the cheap inn.

Mimi sat on the railing at the very edge of the platform, legs swinging, petal skirt fluttering in the high wind. She was clearly enjoying every second of the match.

Milo stood near the barrier, cheering loudly. "Come on, Arthur! Show him what real wind feels like!"

Iris Blackthorn remained silent, but her violet eyes tracked every movement. Her proud smile was faint, almost hidden, yet unmistakable.

Arthur moved faster. He spun the training blade in a wide arc and activated the newest ability he had invented from Talia’s Grimoire. Wind Cutter.

The sword glowed with compressed air. He swung it in a horizontal line that split the air itself. The edge was razor sharp, carrying the force of a minor gale. It struck Kael across the chest and sent the boy flying backward, crashing through the training barrier and into the open sky below.

The impact was so clean that even the other students stopped sparring to watch.

Arthur lowered the blade. The wind affinity around him faded. He turned to face Kael, who lay on his back, gasping, staring at the sky in disbelief.

"Wind Cutter," Arthur said simply. "Coated with high-density wind affinity. That’s the part I made up myself."

Kael coughed, then let out a weak laugh. "You... you’re not trash. You’re actually terrifying."

A few other students began to murmur agreement. The old jokes had stopped months ago. Now they saw him as something more. A monster wearing the face of a boy.

Talia’s voice rang out across the platform, warm and clear.

"Excellent control, Vance. You didn’t just depend on Grimoire spells. You made it your own. That’s the difference between a student and a weapon."

Mimi grinned. "Told you he was going to be good."

Milo punched the air. "That was insane! You’re gonna make the whole academy nervous!"

Iris’s smile widened just a fraction. She said nothing, but her eyes said everything.

Arthur wiped sweat from his brow and prepared to land when the air suddenly changed.

The temperature dropped. A low, resonant hum filled the entire sky. The massive restrictive barrier that had kept the academy floating for a thousand years flickered once, twice, then vanished completely. The protective runes on the edge of the platform began to dim.

Talia’s eyes narrowed. She raised her hand instantly.

"Everyone, back to the dormitories! Now!"

The students began moving, some already transforming their weapons, others racing toward the sky bridges. Arthur sheathed his blade and turned to follow, but the wind that had been swirling around him felt wrong. Too cold. Too heavy.

Talia stepped in front of him, crimson scarf already floating behind her.

"Stay close to me. Something is wrong."

The entire academy platform trembled. The barrier was gone. The sky above them was no longer clear.

From the open air, dozens of cloaked figures began descending.

All of them wore black robes with golden trim. None of them carried visible weapons. None of them spoke. They simply dropped, one after another, landing with perfect silence on the edges of the training platform and the surrounding bridges.

One of the cloaked figures removed his hood. His face was young, almost boyish, with sharp black eyes and a cold smile that didn’t reach them. He took a long, slow breath, as if tasting the wind of the academy for the first time in centuries. His gaze drifted over the floating spires, the training platforms, the students hurrying back toward their dormitories.

"Wow," he murmured, voice soft and almost nostalgic. "All the new faces... Where are the other professors? I can’t wait for the reunion."

Then the smile on his face twisted into something completely unhinged — wide, jagged, and dripping with centuries of madness.