"A little birdy told me," Velisar Mhaerun drawled, his voice curling like smoke in the late amber light. "That some nobody from nowhere did something quite crazy at the Grand Celestial Academy. You see, the birdy chirped and whispered that an entry-level boy with no clan name caused the Resonant Alter to... hum."
His bluish-green cloak flared behind him, the hood masking his expression, but the gleam in his voice was unmistakable.
"It hummed," he chuckled, "as though in awe. That altar only ever does that to High Veined Nobility. Yet you..."
He pointed at Nocth with a lazily curled finger.
"...You made the Garden Beast retreat. Not cower. Retreat. Back into the mists. You made the Dream Pool cloud over like it couldn't fully see your soul. And broke the Mirror Gate during your cohesion trial. They say it shattered."
Nocth didn't respond. His eyes were still. Cold.
"I got curious," Velisar continued. "Heard whispers from shadowy forces watching you. They want to see what makes you tick. Me? I want to play. You see, you're like a bird in a cage. Selun'Thael's little enigma. But I'll set you free."
His tongue slid over his lips with disturbing leisure. "By crippling your veins. Then maybe you'll dance for me."
"You're a demented pervert!" Anni's voice cut through the tension like a blade. She clutched Relin's robe, her innocent tone laced with sharp disgust. "I heard about you! You ruin genius boys and make them your… your... twisted toys!"
Velisar's eyes flickered to her. There was a hungry gleam. "Well, aren't you a cute—"
The moment his gaze shifted to Relin, however, a flicker of fear replaced his grin. Something primal in Relin's presence made Velisar hesitate—just briefly. He turned his focus back.
Silverish lines began glowing from his vest. Grade 8 armor—dangerous and rare.
Then veins.
Silveish bloodline veins lit beneath his skin, glowing with mechanical brilliance. One hundred fifty-two of them, forming complex lattices that boosted his Mercury Vein Ascendancy—his clan's signature.
"We Mhaeruns adapt to machinery. Boosters. Enhancements. Mercury essence makes us fast, poisonous, and unrelenting. Let me show you."
He leapt. Midair spirals of semi-transparent mercury spiritual energy trailed behind his limbs.
The battle had begun.