Slowly, Reed began to process all this new and frankly insane information.
It was almost too much. A hidden gateway. Five missing students. A secret operation running under the noses of the entire academy population. And now, him, of all people, being pulled into the center of it.
Professor Harlen wasn't alone in this endeavor. It became increasingly clear to Reed that other faculty members were also grooming their own students in quiet corners of the academy, preparing them for something no teenager should ever have to face. Each professor had apparently chosen someone unique, someone who stood out, not always the strongest, not always the smartest, but marked by something different. Something that couldn't be taught.
Reed suspected that Harlen's decision to choose him had less to do with raw potential and more to do with that strange aura his powers gave off,the shadows, the absence of mana, the skull. That gamble hadn't been spoken aloud, but the logic was easy to trace. After all, Harlen could've chosen a second-year combat prodigy or a battle-hardened fourth-year with elemental control, but instead, he picked the boy who couldn't even use mana.
Still, there was no bitterness in Reed's heart. If anything, he felt oddly… honored.
His mind was racing,weeks, months, years? How long would it take before they sent them in? Was it a slow burn, or was time pressing in from all sides?
Then it struck him. Harlen hadn't mentioned the timing at all.
"Uh, Professor Harlen," Reed began carefully, breaking the silence. "So it's my belief that we're going to be sent in with other students… and if I'm right, when?"
Harlen blinked, slightly startled by the question. "H,how did you…? Never mind."
He exhaled through his nose, setting his book down on the small desk beside his chair with a soft thud. Then, folding his hands behind his back, he began to pace slowly in front of the fireplace.
"Yes, you're right," he said at last. "The academy is planning to send fifty of our most promising students,under the pretense of a research expedition,to investigate the gateway and, ideally, retrieve the five who were lost."
He paused, his voice shifting subtly. There was a weight to it now, a solemn edge.
"Yes, it's a risk. A terrifying one, frankly. But politically, saying we've lost five of our best students to an unexplained anomaly is far worse than organizing an expedition to retrieve them. If you succeed,if even a fraction of you make it back,the kingdom will sing your names. The data and discoveries you could bring back would be invaluable. But if you fail…"
He trailed off, staring into the flickering flames, his jaw tightening. "I don't want to imagine that outcome."
Reed's breath caught slightly in his chest. There it was,the unspoken truth. This wasn't just an academic operation. It was dangerous. Life-threatening. And yet… Reed felt no hesitation. Only determination.
"And the timing?" Reed asked again softly.
Harlen nodded. "Two months. That's how long the upper staff has decided to wait. Based on what we understand from the people who sent them in, the five students trapped within the gateway don't have supplies that could last longer than that. No food, no water, no way to communicate beyond what we've already received. We can't delay any longer."
He glanced toward Reed now, and something passed in his eyes,guilt? Regret? Or perhaps it was fear. Fear not for himself, but for the ones he was preparing to send into the unknown.
Reed remained still, digesting everything. It felt like some enormous gear inside the academy's hidden machinery had just begun to turn, and he had become one of its teeth,small, perhaps, but essential to the rotation.
"Well, sir…" he said at last, squaring his shoulders, "I won't let you down."
A small smile touched Harlen's face,wry, but genuine. "Oh, I know you won't. Because from now until the day you step through that gate, we'll be working relentlessly to uncover everything we can about your powers. Their limits, their origins, their utility. We'll train you, strengthen you, sharpen you into a blade ready to lead."
He paused again, then added more solemnly, "The other professors will be observing candidates across the academy. In a month's time, they'll make their selections. Students will be approached privately and offered the chance to volunteer for the expedition. Not all will accept, and not all should. But those who do… we'll begin preparing them,together. Team drills, strategic planning, bonding exercises. No one is going in unprepared."
Reed nodded. The unease was still there, of course,it would be insane not to be nervous,but now it was joined by something steadier. Resolve.
There were still many questions. Who were the others chosen? What exactly awaited them beyond the threshold of that gateway? What were the "Sacred Trials" mentioned in that strange letter?
But those could wait.
For now, Reed had something he hadn't possessed since the first day he awakened this strange power: a direction. A mentor. And most importantly, a reason.
His mother and sister. He could still picture them, eyes shining with pride as he lifted them out of the lower tiers of society, into a life of peace and respect. He wouldn't waste this opportunity.
Harlen's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Well, Reed?" he asked, gesturing toward the door that led to the adjoining training yard. "What're you waiting for? Let's get started… if you accept the mission, of course."
Reed didn't even need a moment.
"I'm in," he said firmly, stepping forward.
And with that simple declaration, his path was set. The shadows within him stirred, not in fear, but in readiness.
So began the grueling road of training, preparation, and self-discovery that would lead Reed not just into the unknown…
…but into the Sacred Trials.
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END OF ACT 1