The calm had returned to the halls of Asteria. At least, on the surface. Classes had resumed their usual rhythm. Students moved from one room to another, professors continued their lessons, and the training grounds once again echoed with the clashes between apprentice knights. Yet something had changed. Kael noticed it in the looks. Some students looked away whenever he passed. Others turned around after he had gone by and whispered among themselves. A few, on the other hand, seemed mostly curious. He was used to rumors. But this time, they were talking about something they had actually seen. His aura. Kael walked through the corridor with Noah and Lysandra when Noah sighed. “How long do you think they’re going to talk about it?” Kael turned his head slightly. “About what?” Noah stared at him. “Seriously?” “Yes.” “What happened yesterday.” Kael shrugged. “A few days.” “A few days?” “Maybe a week.” Noah opened his mouth, thought for a few seconds, then gestured toward the students around them. “Kael, look at them.” Kael looked. A group of first-year students was watching them from the other side of the corridor. When they caught his gaze, two of them immediately turned away. Noah continued. “A week is optimistic.” Lysandra gave a small smile. “Noah isn’t completely wrong.” “I never said otherwise.” Kael sighed. “You two are reassuring.” “We’re doing our best.” Noah gave him a small pat on the shoulder. Kael gave him a cold look. “Don’t start.” “What?” “You’re going to end up like Darius.” Noah immediately looked horrified. “Is that a threat?” Lysandra laughed softly. Kael, however, allowed a faint smile to appear. A few meters behind them, Darius walked with two Black Raven knights. Unlike Noah, he had no trouble ignoring the looks. His face had returned to that of the second-in-command: serious, attentive, almost expressionless. His dark armor contrasted with the academy’s black-and-silver uniform. Yet when Kael briefly turned his head toward him, Darius raised an eyebrow. Kael answered with an annoyed look. Darius smiled. Then he immediately returned to his professional expression. Noah noticed the exchange. “He’s doing that on purpose.” “Obviously.” “And you’re letting him?” “No.” “Yet you’re smiling.” Kael turned toward him. “You talk too much.” “Ethan warned me.” Kael stopped. “Ethan actually told you that?” “Not directly.” “Then?” Noah smiled. “Darius told me.” Kael closed his eyes for a few seconds. “I’m going to have to ask Ethan to stop talking to anyone.” Lysandra laughed. The tension of the past few hours seemed to ease slightly. But it hadn’t disappeared. --- The next class was devoted to aura control. The professor placed the students in a circle at the center of the training room. “Today, we’re going to work on something simple,” he announced. “Stability.” Several students sighed. “Before you can master a powerful aura, you must be able to maintain a weak one without allowing it to fluctuate unnecessarily. An emotion, a distraction, or poor mana circulation can be enough to disrupt your control.” Kael remained silent. The professor continued. “Your aura must respond to your will. Not your anger. Not your fear. Not your memories.” That last sentence caught Kael’s attention. He slowly inhaled. Around him, the students began manifesting their auras. Different shades appeared throughout the room. Kael did the same. A thin aura spread around his hand. Stable. Perfectly stable. He maintained it for several seconds. Then something happened. A tiny fluctuation. Barely visible. Kael felt it immediately. His gaze dropped toward his fingers. The aura had changed for a fraction of a second. Darker. Denser. He slowly closed his hand. The manifestation disappeared. Beside him, Lysandra had noticed it. She said nothing and waited until the end of the class. --- “You felt it, didn’t you?” Kael walked beside her through the corridor. “Yes.” “It was different from yesterday.” Kael thought for a moment. “Weaker.” “But faster.” He looked at her. Lysandra continued. “Yesterday, your aura reacted to what they said to you. Today, it appeared while you were calm.” Kael remained silent. That was precisely what concerned him. Until now, he could at least understand the trigger. Anger. Memories. The fear of losing someone. But if his power was beginning to react for no apparent reason… He had no idea where that could lead. “Kael?” He looked up. “I’m fine.” Lysandra studied him for a few seconds. “You don’t have to say that every time.” Kael gave a faint smile. “I know.” She said nothing. She simply stayed beside him. --- At the end of class, Darius was waiting near the stairs. “Coming?” Kael stopped. “Where?” “Nowhere.” “Then why are you asking if I’m coming?” Darius smiled. “I was just checking that you were still as difficult as ever.” Noah, who was walking up behind them, intervened. “He is.” Kael sighed. “Thanks.” Darius crossed his arms. “How’s your aura?” His tone had changed. Kael noticed immediately. “It reacted during class.” Darius straightened slightly. “Again?” “Barely.” “But it reacted.” “Yes.” Darius thought for a moment. Gareth stood a few meters behind him, as always. “What did you feel?” “A fluctuation.” “Anger?” “No.” Darius frowned slightly. “Fear?” “No.” Silence settled between them. Kael looked at his hands. “I don’t know.” Darius didn’t answer immediately. Then he simply said: “Then we’ll find out.” Kael raised his eyes. “Together?” “You really thought I was going to let you search alone?” Kael smiled. “No.” Darius gave him a light tap on the back of the head. “Good.” “Darius.” “What?” “Do that again and I’ll have you sent back to Veyron.” “You can’t.” “I’m the patriarch.” “And I’m the second-in-command.” Noah raised his hand. “Can I suggest that we leave you two to sort this out?” Lysandra burst out laughing. Kael and Darius looked at him at the same time. “No.” Noah slowly lowered his hand. “Okay.” --- The day could have continued like that. Classes. Training. Meals. Conversations. Rumors. But when Kael passed by the gardens in the late afternoon, something caught his attention. He stopped. The crystal in his pocket was vibrating. Very faintly. Kael placed a hand over it. Darius, walking behind him, immediately noticed the movement. “Again?” Kael took out the crystal. This time, no light appeared. No symbol. Only a steady vibration. Like a heartbeat. Kael frowned. “It never does that.” Darius stepped closer. “What is it reacting to?” Kael looked toward the gardens. “I don’t know.” They remained silent. Then the crystal vibrated a second time. Kael slowly turned toward the old wall. The same place where they had discovered the hidden mechanism. But nothing had changed. Darius signaled to the two knights nearby. “Check the area.” “Yes, Second-in-Command.” The knights immediately left. Kael took a few steps forward. The vibration grew stronger. Then the crystal projected something. Not a map. Not a symbol. A sentence. Three words. “He knows you.” Kael didn’t move. Darius stared at the projection. His expression changed. “Kael…” The sentence disappeared. The crystal became cold again. A heavy silence settled between them. “Who?” Darius asked. Kael slowly tightened his grip around the crystal. “I don’t know.” But deep inside, something had changed. Until now, someone seemed to have been following his investigation. Someone knew the symbol. Someone had approached Veyron. Someone knew about the Keeper. But this time, the message was different. He knows you. Not he is watching you. Not he is looking for you. He knew him. Kael raised his eyes toward the gardens. Darius placed a hand on his shoulder. “We’re not doing anything tonight.” Kael didn’t protest. “Okay.” Darius seemed surprised by how easily he accepted. “You actually agreed?” Kael gave him a look. “Enjoy it. It won’t happen often.” Darius smiled. But neither of them noticed the motionless figure standing far behind the trees. It was watching them. Then it disappeared into the shadows. A few seconds later, a new mark appeared on the damp stone of the old wall. The same symbol. But this time, it was accompanied by one additional detail. A small crown. And beneath it, a single letter. V.

Whispers of Asteria