Chapter 80: (Bleeding Thorn – Don't pluck thorns while they're still bleeding. See if they can be nurtured. See if they bloom)
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Third Floor – Cafeteria Pavilion
Above, still leaning against the tinted glass, the Apex Thorn cadet watched the scene unfold below.
The angle gave him a perfect view – not of the food, but the interaction. The quiet intensity. The presence that Morca carried even while doing nothing.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Emotionless. Controlled. Dangerous. That kid's a strange one."
"Reporting already?" a voice asked from behind him.
He turned slightly to see another Apex Thorn cadet slide into the booth with a lazy smirk, a metal card flipping between his fingers. His badge gleamed faintly – same rank.
"They're not just rumors then," the second cadet said, glancing down. "Especially that one. Third-ranked Unique cadet. Crimson eyes... abyssal gaze. Can't believe he's a first year. Clearly Saint Rank."
