Rumours
I stood quietly outside the training grounds, arms crossed, the cold wind brushing against my uniform. Varek must've noticed me, but he didn't say anything — he knew better than to interrupt.
Not that I was paying attention to him anyway.
My gaze remained fixed on one person inside.
Nyx Akers.
He was on his knees, fists clenched, shoulders trembling.
Pathetic. Yet necessary.
Elaris's voice slipped into my mind, cool and smooth as always.
"Giving that beastkin your training points just to provoke Nyx… was that really necessary?"
"It was," I muttered. "I needed to know if he still clings to the past."
The result was clear. The rage, the violence — all for the sake of Georgina.
"So what now?" Elaris asked.
"I break him," I said, eyes narrowing. "Completely."
"How?"
"Tomorrow," I said, stepping back into the shadows, "he'll be challenged by someone."
"Let me guess… Elias?"
I smirked. "Of course."
"Elias doesn't care about points. And he hates you. Why would he go along with your plan?"
I shrugged.
"It doesn't matter," I said, voice low. "What happens if someone spreads… rumors… about his favorite girl?"
There was a pause.
Then Elaris's voice grew sharper.
"You're thinking—"
"Yes," I said, the corners of my lips lifting. "It's time for a little chaos."
"How are you going to pull it off?"
I didn't answer.
Instead, I pulled out a sleek communication crystal and tapped in a direct line.
A second later, a voice answered.
"Young Master Arthur?" said Drake, my loyal shadow — currently stationed at the Crimson Magic Tower under my mother's name.
"Check the message I sent you," I said.
A brief pause.
"…Huh. This'll take some time, but don't worry. I'll handle it."
"Good." I cut the connection without another word.
"You're having a fake video made. One that'll spread across the first year."
"Yes," I confirmed, staring at the fading sky. "Tomorrow is going to be fun."
Arcadia's starlights flickered into view one by one, bathing the city in calm.
But beneath that peace…
I had already lit the match.
——————-
The morning breeze tasted like citrus and frost — unusually crisp for Arcadia. I hummed to myself as I waited at the transit station, tapping my foot against the silver-tiled platform. No classes today. Just a quiet Thursday with no mandatory lectures except for artifact-making electives.
A perfect day for a break.
I smiled, checking my wristband. Elias and Veylan should arrive any minute now, and Caelistra had just messaged that she was on her way too. The plan was simple — a floating cinema in Tier Three's entertainment district, popcorn, a little gossip, maybe poke fun at Veylan's ridiculous fashion taste.
But then… the laughter started.
Low at first. A snicker. A chuckle. Then louder. Dozens of voices rising in overlapping waves, like a cruel orchestra of mockery.
I turned.
A group of first-years were huddled over a projection crystal, eyes wide, mouths twisted into grins far too mean. A few glanced at me — not with admiration, but something far uglier.
Confusion prickled through me. Then came Caelistra — snow-white hair fluttering, her ever-serene eyes a stormy grey today. Her uniform was impeccable, as always, but her expression was tight with concern.
"Georgina," she said, her voice careful, "you need to see this."
She lifted her comm-band. The hologram flickered into view — and my breath caught in my throat.
It was Nyx.
Not the Nyx I once knew. Not the quiet, haunted boy from before.
This version — he was yelling. Eyes wild. Voice raw with anger. His words were… vile.
"…that backstabbing slut — Georgina, fucking climbing up to Elias like some dog in heat…"
He snarled Elias's name next, followed by a slur I didn't even know he knew.
Caelistra quickly closed the feed, but the damage was done. The whole first-year batch must have seen it by now — it was trending through the local network like wildfire.
"That's not… that's not real," I whispered. But my voice betrayed me. It cracked.
Caelistra placed a gentle hand on my arm.
"I don't want to believe it either," she said softly. "But it looks… convincing."
Veylan and Elias arrived just moments later. Elias's usual cool gaze narrowed the instant he heard the tail end of the video from another student's band. His lips thinned. He didn't say a word, just looked at me.
I shook my head. "I swear I didn't know anything. I didn't… I haven't talked to him in months."
"I believe you," Elias said, but his tone was ice. "Still… this changes everything."
Veylan didn't say anything either — but I saw it in his eyes. Fury. Not for me, but for the disrespect Elias had just been handed.
The station now buzzed with cruel whispers.
"Damn, he really snapped."
"Did you see his face? That guy's unstable."
"Imagine being that bitter…"
I didn't even have time to breathe.
Elias's hand gripped mine — tight, possessive — and before I could say a word, he turned on his heel and barked, "Follow me."
Veylan, Caelistra, and the few others who had joined us fell in step without question.
My heart pounded as Elias pulled me through the transit gate. The rune lights flared, flashing blue across our skin as we were swept toward Tier Two — the combat training zone.
"What are we doing?" I finally asked.
Elias didn't look back. His voice was low, but sharp enough to cut glass.
"Ending this."
The moment we stepped out onto the field, the wind hit harder. Mana flowed denser here — raw, untamed, like the students who trained in it.
And right in the middle of that field stood him.
Nyx Akers.
Alone. Blade strapped to his waist, eyes shadowed with something unreadable.
He turned slowly as we arrived, and I saw it — the flicker of recognition when he saw me. Regret? Rage? I didn't care anymore.
Elias stepped forward, his aura flaring with white-blue light, radiant like a rising god.
"You've got a lot of nerve, Akers," Elias said, loud enough for everyone nearby to hear. "Trash-talking my name? Her name?" He motioned at me, and I flinched at the sudden attention.
Nyx didn't speak. He just stared — tired, silent.
But Elias wasn't going to let it end that way.
"I don't give a damn what you're going through," he said. "I don't care if you're cursed, broken, or pissed at the world. But you crossed the line."
He took a step forward.
"So, I'm giving you a choice."
Students were gathering now — whispers, gasps, even some cheers.
Elias's voice rang clear:
"Fight me. Here and now. Duel. Official. Or crawl away like the coward you've become."
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Even the air seemed to wait.
Then — Nyx moved.
Not with power. Not with aggression.
But he reached up and pulled the scabbard off his back, drawing the dull, worn blade that once made instructors praise his talent. He held it in front of him, point down.
"I accept," he said quietly.
But his eyes — gods, those eyes — they weren't angry.
They were empty.