{. A little disclaimer to you guys finals have started so sometimes i m having trouble finding time and ideas to write chapters for this novel. so for the next 2 3 weeks where i Probably will upload daily the chapters might not be as long or as good ): but still i hope you enjoy this chapter}
Aster wasn't paranoid. He was cautious. Caution just happened to look a lot like paranoia when you were being hunted by gods, monsters, or worse—faculty.
It had been a three day since the group hunt, and the academy had settled into a deadly rhythm. Classes in the morning, training in the afternoon, practicals in the evening. Occasionally, a new student wouldn't show up the next day. No one ever asked why.
But today, something was off.
Aster sat in the back of the rune theory lecture, half-listening to Professor Kolstein drone about compression sequences and mana feedback loops. He scribbled something that vaguely looked like notes, but mostly he was watching the windows. Not the ones on the wall. His own.
> [Status Window]
His interface hovered in his vision, semi-transparent. It was a familiar comfort by now—cool blue tones, sharp fonts, the occasional passive-aggressive remark from the system.
But something flickered.
Just for a second. He almost missed it.
A line of red text, buried between the Skill section and the Quest section. Gone in the blink of an eye. His head jerked back like he'd been hit. He immediately closed and reopened the window.
Nothing. Clean again.
He rubbed his eyes.
No sleep deprivation. No mana drain. I'm not hallucinating… right?
Still, he opened the interface again, slowly, carefully.
Nothing at first.
But then—
FZZZT
Another flicker. This time slower. The screen glitched like a corrupted file, and one single line appeared, jittering at the bottom.
> [He sees you.]
Then it vanished. Like it had never existed.
Aster closed the system instantly, his heart hammering like a war drum.
"What the hell was that?"
He didn't say it aloud, but his fingers twitched against his desk. Kolstein droned on about ancient spirit harmonics as Aster's mind spun.
Who's "he"?
Was it The system? A rogue admin? An observer? Something else?
The idea that his system might be compromised—or worse, that it was not the only one watching him—threw everything off.
That night, he didn't sleep trying to figure out who was the person watching him and what he wanted from him.
He faked a stomach curse to get out of endurance sparring and used the time to retreat to the secluded east rooftop of the dormitory, far from curious eyes. There, beneath the glowing barrier sky, he did what he always did when afraid.
He thought.
Okay. Think. Think like someone who's being hunted by shadows but doesn't want to end up as blood paint on a training floor.
Step one: hide your real strength.
Step two: fake some weaknesses.
Step three: trust no one.
He revised his entire approach. In spell training, he deliberately failed incantation resonance by "mispronouncing" words. In sword class, he used awkward stances, even letting his blade slip a few times which he wasn't really trying to. The instructors took notes. Some students laughed.
Let them. He wanted them to at the least.
They were so easy to fool. Humans always were.
But not everyone.
Sometimes, out of the corner of his eye, Aster caught glimpses—just flickers—of a student who wasn't supposed to be there. Standing in doorways. Watching.
One time, he entered the alchemy greenhouse and passed a reflection that didn't match his movement. It disappeared when he turned.
He stopped using his full mana in any class. Ever.
He stopped checking his status screen unless he was locked in a warded bathroom stall.
He stopped trusting the system, just a little bit.
That night, he opened it again. Hesitant. Slow.
> [Status Window]
Name: Aster
Rank: Initiate (Year 1)
Title: None
Stats:
Strength: 7
Stamina: 10
Mana: 11
Health: 9
Mana Sensitivity: 13
Agility: 8
Intelligence: 12
Perception: 14
Willpower: 13
Skills:
– flow reading (prototype)-passive
briefly sense the next movement if a target in close range
– Ember Spark (Lv. 1)
– Beginner Swordplay (Lv. 2)
– ???
I chose the skill flow reading from my skill ticket even though there might have been something better to choose .
When your life is as uncertain as mine being able to know what your opponent does a little before he attacks you is a massive win
(You know what else is massive {what if ninja got a low taper fade})
[Mystery Item: Time Remaining – ???]
[Hidden Status: Suppressed]
He stared at that new line.
[Hidden Status: Suppressed]
He hadn't seen that before.
Was it always there? Or did the glitch unlock it?
Then there was the Mystery Item—still unopened. The system hadn't given him a countdown, just a vague "[Time Remaining – ???]" like a cruel joke.
[He sees you.]
That line burned itself into his brain like a cursed brand. Who the hell was he?
He almost expected the glitch again. But nothing happened this time. The screen remained solid. Passive. Mocking.
He closed it and leaned against the cold wall.
This place is a monster masquerading as a school. And the worst part is… I might not be alone in this.
Something was coming.
And he had no idea if he was preparing for it—or being groomed by it.
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