Kael woke to the faint scent of medicine and clean sheets.
The infirmary ceiling stared back at him—smooth, white stone with glowing runes pulsing softly along its edges.
His ribs ached with a dull throb, his arms felt like jelly, and something in his back popped every time he breathed too hard.
He sat up slowly, groaning as the stiffness in his spine greeted him like an old, unwelcome enemy.
The bed was far too soft, almost swallowing him whole.
The room itself was eerily quiet, until the door finally opened.
Theo stepped in, looking entirely too well-rested for Kael's liking.
Not a wrinkle marred his uniform, and not a speck of dust clung to his impeccably clean glasses.
"Oh," Theo said, seeing him upright. "You're already awake."
"Disappointed?" Kael rasped, his voice a little rough.
"No, just surprised," Theo replied, a hint of amusement in his tone. "I honestly thought you were planning on sleeping for a week, just like you said."
Kael rolled his eyes, then winced. "Please don't make me laugh. Something in my ribs is definitely broken."
Theo walked over and handed him a small, heavy badge. A faint silver glow pulsed at its center.
Kael frowned. "What's this?"
"Your rank token," Theo said. "You passed Test Two."
Kael blinked. "Wait, seriously?"
"You held your ground, didn't surrender, and apparently impressed at least one of the evaluators," Theo explained. "They awarded you a Star."
Kael looked down.
Sure enough, the badge had one faint star etched into its surface, like it had been burned in by light itself.
He held it up. "Does that mean I'm finally a real student?"
Theo tilted his head slightly. "No, it's not that easy, trust me. This just means you're now eligible to take the final and actual exam to determine your place."
"Wow. No pressure at all," Kael muttered, the sarcasm thick. "Do you have any idea what it might be?"
Theo shook his head. "Just assumptions. We'll have to wait and see."
They left the infirmary together.
The academy felt... different today.
Where before the air had been thick with nerves and anxious silence, now it buzzed with motion and energy.
Students wandered the walkways, talking animatedly, sparring in practice fields, racing to upper floors.
Magical glyphs shimmered across stone walls, vibrant and alive.
The sky was clear, the banners hanging between towers rippled in the breeze.
It felt like a city that had exhaled.
Kael looked around as they walked the winding garden path that cut through the academy's central plaza. "So… what happens now?"
Theo glanced over. "Now? Nothing. Today's a rest day."
"No surprise test?"
"Nope. They're giving everyone time to recover from yesterday. Test Three is tomorrow, I think."
Kael raised an eyebrow. "And that's the final one?"
Theo nodded. "Yeah. The third trial determines class placement. After that, you'll be sorted into your year group and assigned instructors. Right now, everyone's technically 'unranked' aside from these stars."
"Did you get one?"
"What do you think?"
Kael clicked his tongue in annoyance, then asked. "So what does the star actually mean?"
"It's just performance recognition for now," Theo said. "A personal marker. Doesn't affect anything directly until after the third trial."
Kael shrugged, a faint, tired smile. "Still feels kinda nice. One shiny star."
"Most people don't get one," Theo said, giving him a sideways glance.
As they strolled through the grounds, Kael noticed details he hadn't picked up during the chaos of Selection Day.
Towering archways of blackstone etched with glowing runes. Floating sigils pulsed above doorways. Sparring fields alive with the crackle of magic and the gleam of weapons.
The whole place looked like a mage's fever dream combined with a war college.
"I've been meaning to ask," Kael began, "where are all the second years and above? I've only seen one second-year student, and that's it."
Theo looked genuinely surprised. "You saw a second-year student?"
"Is that not possible?" Kael asked, confused.
"Well, to answer your first question," Theo began, "the reason you can't find any upper years is because they are in the real Academy, and we are not."
"Uhm, what exactly do you mean by that?"
"Did you really think they were just going to mix us up with the official students of the academy when we haven't proven our worth yet?" Theo countered, a slight smirk playing on his lips.
"Well... I guess not."
"Exactly. This place you're standing in now is more of an illusion. It is made to house all the candidates of the first year and filter them. The real deal is in a completely different location."
"Then what about the second-year I saw?"
"I dunno. She might be a delinquent who left campus or something."
'She sure did look like one,' Kael thought wryly.
"Can you explain the structure of the school to me?" Kael suddenly asked, changing the subject.
Theo gave him another side glance and sighed, but then began.
"Obsidian Fang operates on a four-year cycle. Everyone here is either a first, second, third, or fourth-year. We're First Gens—bottom of the chain."
"Obvious," Kael muttered. "We're the ones limping."
"No one's placed into classes until Trial Three is done," Theo continued patiently. "After that, students are grouped into four classes per year, A through D. Each class gets two instructors. And your star rating helps determine where you end up."
Kael raised an eyebrow. "So more stars means… what? Better teachers?"
Theo nodded. "And better resources. More Archive access. Higher-tier training. It's essentially a fast-track to power within the academy."
"I see."