Rhian was about to leave with the rest of the class, his body feeling heavier than it should after just standing around and listening. Maybe it was the atmosphere of the room, maybe it was the way Liane talked about things that felt so distant to him, forms, true selves, transformations.
But just as he reached the door, her voice called out.
"Rhian, stay."
The other students didn't even glance back.
Rhian turned back slowly.
Liane stood there, hands in her pockets, posture relaxed.
When it was just the two of them, she finally spoke.
"So," she said casually, "how does it feel to be awakened? Heard you had an incredible fight already."
Rhian blinked, caught off guard.
'Of course she knows,' he thought. 'These teachers probably talk more than they teach.'
Still, hearing her say it out loud made him scratch the back of his neck awkwardly.
"It was… alright," he answered carefully.
She chuckled lightly. "Spoken like someone who survived by the skin of their teeth."
She stepped closer, looking him over like a puzzle she couldn't fully see yet.
"I'm sure you've been wondering why you're in this class at all," she said bluntly. "You don't have a form. No claws, no wings, no extra limbs. Other than that weird hand of yours, nothing about you screams evolved."
Rhian shifted uncomfortably without meaning to. He hated how easily she pointed it out. Especially the hand.
Her white eyes moved down, staring directly at his gloved left hand.
"Why do you hide it?" she asked. Not accusing. Just plain. "It's not like it does anything special, right?"
Rhian didn't answer immediately. She didn't wait for him to.
"The first step to growing," she continued, "especially for someone like you... is accepting yourself first. Doesn't matter if the whole world rejects you, mocks you, or fears you. You're the one who has to have your own back first."
"And as for your form…" she paused, looking at him like she was staring at something only half-formed, waiting to surface, "if you have one, it'll come with strength. Some people struggle to access it. Some can't hold it long. Usually, the ones who take the longest…" she smiled faintly, "end up being very dangerous."
"But until that happens," she added, "there's not much I can teach you directly. I don't waste time on things I can't train."
"You'll attend class like everyone else," she finished. "Learn everything you can. Get the basics down. Grow your strength. And when the time comes…" her grin sharpened a little, "we'll see what really comes crawling out of you."
Rhian didn't know whether to feel insulted… or challenged.
Maybe both.
Either way, he nodded.
That was all he could do.
For now.
Rhian walked down the empty hallway, his steps slow, his thoughts messier than before.
His stomach rumbled quietly. The fight earlier, the training, even just standing around tensed for so long, all of it drained him more than he thought. But what stuck with him wasn't hunger.
It was his hand.
He looked down at it, that gloved left hand hiding the burned, scarred skin underneath. Was this thing the reason he couldn't transform like the others? Was this mark a curse in the literal sense? Or was it something else entirely?
Either way, it didn't matter.
He already made up his mind.
'If this thing's holding me back... I'll find a way around it,' he thought, his green eyes narrowing. 'I'll heal it. I'll grow past it. I'll break through.'
Liane's words stayed fresh in his head.
Accept yourself.
Grow stronger.
And eventually... find out what you really are.
He remembered his system too, the screen only he could see. So many of his abilities were locked away, sitting behind barriers he didn't know how to break.
But there was one thing he was sure about.
Strength.
That was the key to everything.
If he wanted to unlock more. If he wanted to transform. If he wanted answers, real answers, then he had to get stronger.
Raise his core rank. Fight harder enemies. Improve everything.
And more than anything… survive.
His mind wandered again to that monster.
That thing.
The faceless creature that tore his parents apart right in front of him all those years ago.
He didn't even know if it was still alive. Portals didn't leave things untouched for long. Monsters fought monsters. Hunters cleared gates.
And if it lived in the forest there was a chance it died.
But Rhian didn't care.
Dead or alive, if that thing was still out there, he'd find it.
And he'd kill it.
But first... he needed power.
First... he needed to finish his time here.
His journey wasn't starting when he left this school.
It started right now.
Rhian walked through the campus, hands in his pockets, lost in thought.
He wondered quietly about ways to increase his core rank. It was obvious strength was tied to the core, that strange organ that awakened in every carrier.
But no one had explained the process yet. Core Class hadn't come up in his schedule. And he hadn't stepped foot in the library either.
Which meant he was completely lost on that part.
'Maybe it grows through fighting? Or training? Or both?' he thought, eyes narrowed slightly.
He sighed.
'Whatever it is... I'll figure it out.'
Right now, though, strength could wait.
His stomach growled, louder than before, and he instinctively placed a hand over it. Which was weird considering he ate earlier, a full meal at that.
Was awakening supposed to come with this kind of hunger?
He yawned. His body felt sluggish, the tiredness finally creeping in properly.
It wasn't just mental exhaustion, his body was weak as well.
He kept walking lazily toward the dorm, rubbing his eyes slightly.
People walking past him gave glances.
Maybe news of his fight with Nia spread faster than he thought. Or maybe walking around yawning like a deadbeat didn't exactly help his low-key status.
Either way, Rhian didn't care.
He was too hungry.
Too tired.
And in desperate need of sleep.