While they cheered and celebrated the idea of a party, a certain pink-haired individual came up with the grand idea to spatially expand their house and convert it into a grand hall fit for a royal ball.

  This pink-haired individual was obviously Cyrus Valerion, and although his suggestion was greeted with cheers at first, it soon became obvious to everyone that there was an ulterior motive behind the very ‘generous’ suggestion, and the snide looks Grendar and Lilith shot in Aodhán’s direction confirmed their suspicions.

  Aodhán was sick of it, truly. He understood the competitive rivalry between him and Cyrus, as they were both warring for the same position on the Tower Leaderboards. However, this hatred Cyrus and his friends bore against him had gone on for far longer than he’d anticipated.

  At first, he’d understood it, even enjoyed it, but things had escalated after the midterm break, reaffirming to Aodhán that there really was a side to this story that he wasn’t seeing, because aside from the fact that he was a commoner, he still had no idea what he could have possibly done to make them hate him this much. Even Marcellus wasn’t this detested.

  Sensing the rising tension, Alesh suggested, “I think we should use a more neutral space. That way everyone is welcome.”

  “I agree.” Ankaz hastily agreed and added. “The cafeteria is a good location.”

  “The cafeteria is too big.” Grendar scowled at Ankaz. “Cyrus can’t expand such a large space easily.”

  “He doesn’t need to. The cafeteria is large enough to accommodate us all without issue.” Aida countered, and after a short argument, they all finally agreed to use the cafeteria, making sure that everyone was welcome.

  With the venue now decided, the next topic to discuss was the party decorations, and unsurprisingly, Daruk wanted to be involved, coming up with a brilliant idea to transform the cafeteria into a sweeping wasteland of snow and ice.

  From the way he described the whole thing in detail, Aodhán suspected this wasn’t the first time he’d had this ‘grand’ idea. Aodhán would have loved to also involve himself in the decorations, but he soon decided that it was better for all involved if he didn’t.

  Yurin, Meredith, and a few other students also decided to join in decorating the cafeteria, and while they all made their way to the cafeteria, Aodhán went back home to begin packing his things in preparation for the break.

  When he got home, he took the stairs two at a time, excited to begin. However, halfway up the stairs, he came across Meredith and asked. “Excited for the holidays?”

  Meredith shrugged and handed him an invite. “I’d be more excited if you came to my 17th birthday party.”

  Aodhán accepted the elaborately decorated invitation with a sigh and said,. “I can’t speak for Daruk, but I’ll try my best to make it.”

  “Try?” Meredith pouted and Aodhán laughed. “I can’t make any promises, Meredith, but I’ll definitely do my best to show up.”

  “I guess that’s all I can ask for.” Meredith smiled, and they began walking up the stairs together.

  When they reached the top of the stairs, Aodhán sidled closer to her and asked, “So, aside from your birthday party, what other plans do you have for the break?”

  “Nothing much.” Meredith chuckled. “The estate is usually boring by this time of the year, and with the rainy season drawing nearer, perhaps I might retire to my mother’s estate at Ocean’s Tide.”

  Aodhán shook his head at the luxury of nobles. Ocean’s Tide was one of the most beautiful cities in sector 4, a sector where half its landmass was slightly submerged in an ocean so clear it was rumored to be crystalline.

  “What about you?” Meredith asked, and Aodhán shrugged. “I have no plans for the break. I just want to practice my runes, work on my advancement, and spend time with my family.”

  “So boring.” Meredith rolled her eyes. “Please tell me you’re going to the cafeteria party?”

  “Yeah, I’ll be there.” Aodhán laughed and shook his head in amusement. “Why? Do you have anything planned for me?”

  “Oh, I’ve got a lot of things planned.” Meredith smiled and began pulling him towards her room by his storm scarf. “In fact, I’ve got so much planned that I don’t think we’ll ever have enough time to tackle them.”

  “Oh yeah? What about the decorations?”

  “The decorations can wait.” Meredith replied as she pushed her door open with dramatic flair and yanked Aodhán into her room. “My plans with you, though, those are very urgent.”

  Aodhán laughed, unable to help himself, and when Meredith shut the door behind him, he pressed his lips against hers and said,. “Well, let’s not keep those plans waiting.”

  One hour later, Aodhán stepped out of Meredith’s room, a sweaty, euphoric mess, his legs wobbling as he made his way back to his room. Without hesitation, he headed straight for the bathroom to take a much-needed shower. With the party scheduled for the evening, he had about 4–5 hours left before he needed to begin preparing, so he decided a rejuvenating rest was in order.

  He woke up two hours later to a bunch of texts from Daruk and Yurin, and after responding to each one, he began his preparations for the party. Feeling a little daring, he decided to go with the same outfit he had worn to the Blackwell party. It was the outfit he had copied from Az’marthon, but Aodhán thought it fit the occasion perfectly.

  The attire fit him even more snuggly than before, highlighting his muscled frame and revealing more of the golden lines on his chest in a teasing way. When he finished dressing, he moved to stare at himself in the mirror and had to admit that he looked great. His hair, which had been an overgrown mess for the past few weeks, now sat pretty on his head, rippling with tiny arcs of red, black, and green electricity. His patched scruff was gone, revealing a lot more of his face, which had become even more chiseled with his recent advancements.

  All in all, he looked nice, and after one last look in the mirror, Aodhán stepped out of his room and made his way to house 3 to meet with Yurin and Daruk while they got ready.

  Daruk was dressed in one of his icy suits, somehow managing to look both hot and cold at the same time, while Yurin was dressed in a Dorom—a traditional attire made of a colorless, glass-like fabric that was a little extravagant for the party they were attending.

  Aodhán was about to point out this fact when Yurin suddenly infused the outfit with light essence, unleashing an explosion of light that lit up the whole room and bathed the walls in gold.

  “What the fuck?!” Aodhán cursed, squinting as he shielded his eyes from the glare. “Are you trying to blind us all?”

  “Yes.” Yurin laughed, arching his back in amusement. “Feast your eyes on my glory, you pesky mortals.”

  “We won’t have any eyes to feast with if you do not turn that thing off right now.” Daruk shouted, his eyes squeezed shut and shielded by an ice-coated palm.

  , and Yurin reduced the intensity to manageable levels muttering,

  “Party poopers.” Yurin muttered as he reduced the light intensity almost by half. Still, the Dorom was so bright that Aodhán was certain it could function as a beacon even at noon.

  “Why can’t you just wear a simple suit?” Aodhán asked, and Yurin replied.

  “Because, unlike the rest of you pseudo-nobles, I’ve never attended a party with nobles before so I have to make an impression.”

  “I think an impression is an understatement.” Daruk chuckled, still squinting at the outfit. “You’ll make a freaking spectacle.”

  “Hahaha. Very funny, Daruk. Very funny.” Smoothing out the creases on the Dorom, Yurin looked at Aodhán and asked. “What do you think?”

  “I think it could do with a little less brightness. At this point you’re a danger to us all.”

  They teased Yurin for a few more minutes until he eventually decided to ditch the Dorom and wear something a little more appropriate. As he forced himself into the fancy gold-laced black suit, he glared at Daruk and said. “You’re the meanest person I know. And you,” he glared at Aodhán. “You’re just evil.”

  They all laughed, and Aodhán wished he had a portable camera to capture the moment. The snappers the reporters used were bulky and incredibly complex to use, but with technology rising so fast, Aodhán hoped a portable version would be available soon.

  They spent the next few minutes chatting about various topics, ranging from the exams to the party, and then to Andrew. Aodhán especially missed Andrew as this party would have been a lot more interesting with him around.

  Wanting the check up on him, Aodhán texted Rahim to inquire about Andrew’s wellbeing, and although he hadn’t exactly been expecting good news, Rahim’s response still disappointed him.

  Andrew was still under the influence of the twisted effect, and any hope that might regain his senses before the end of the week was no nil. It was concerning, especially when one considered the personality change that usually came with the twisted effect. Aodhán relayed Rahim’s response to Yurin and Daruk, both of whom grimaced in concern.

  They didn’t stay sad for long, though. They had a party to attend, and the last thing Andrew would want was for them to worry about him when they could be having fun instead.

  Five minutes later, they stepped out of the house and began walking towards the cafeteria, chatting and laughing with the other students they came across on their way there. Some students were dressed just as moderately as they were, however, most of the students were dressed in attires so extravagant that the Dorom would be considered bland in comparison.

  One of the more extravagantly dressed students was Scarlett, who was decked in a crimson gown adorned in shining gems and gold lacings. Crimson feathers adorned the back of the dress, and a large, diamond-shaped necklace adorned her neck. She was accompanied by her two brothers, both of whom looked like butlers beside her overly enhanced looks.

  When she saw them, she made a puking gesture and said. “Dear heavens, what in the world are you guys wearing?”

  “It’s called a suit.” Daruk replied with a shady smile. “Have you never seen a suit?”

  Scarlett rolled her eyes at the shade. “Of course, I know what a suit is, its just, you guys look so simple I could puke.”

  “I knew I should have worn the dorom. At this rate, it’ll be a miracle if any one even realizes that I attended this party.” Yurin lamented, raising his head to bawl at the sky.

  Dressed nearly as flamboyantly as Scarlett was Cyrus and his friends except Kellan Dravenor who looked like he would rather be anywhere else than at the party in that moment. Lupin was also dressed a little flamboyantly, but just like the dresses she had worn ever since her father’s death, the gown was black. It was a bell-shaped, floor-length gown that hid all of her womanly curves, yet only served to make her looks even more refined. Aodhán felt a small pang of jealousy when he saw her in the company of Alesh Vilaris, looking radiant and even a little happy.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  As they drew closer to the cafeteria, they came across more of their friends, and Aodhán soon realized that perhaps Scarlett was right and they should have dressed a little more extravagantly than they had.

  They soon came across Ayisha and Cameron Lorde who seemed to be attending the party as a duo. Ayisha was dressed in an inconspicuous silky grey gown that almost seemed to fade out of reality every time she held still for more than two seconds, and although Cameron’s outfit was a little more colorful, it barely stood out either.

  Ayisha waved awkwardly when she saw him, and Aodhán sighed. Ayisha was still acting weird around him, and although she had finally stopped calling him fated, she was still a little awkward and formal whenever she was around him. She was getting better though, and the more they spoke, the more she relaxed until she was laughing and scowling at him the way she used to. Aodhán knew she would most likely return to being awkward and formal the next time he saw her, but at least for now, she was having fun.

  They were nearly at the entrance of the cafeteria when Aodhán finally saw Meredith who was dressed in an azure colored gown that flowed and rippled around her body like water. The gown clung to her skin so tightly that it highlighted all her curves, and her raven black hair clung to her neck and shoulders as if she just exited the shower. The whole look gave off the vibe that she was wet, and Aodhán was here for it. She smiled when she noticed his attention, causing Yurin and Daruk to cheer childishly.

  One person whose outfit of choice surprised him, though, was Imani, who was dressed in a smoky black outfit that was even more revealing than Meredith’s.

  Imani had undergone a drastic change in the last few weeks, and right now the only thing nerdy about her was the splatter of ink around her fingers. A closer look, however, soon revealed that the splatter of ink was actually a temporary tattoo of what seemed to be a short quote, and that said a lot about the person Imani was slowly becoming.

  Her inky black hair fell around her shoulders in waves, and the desperate innocence her eyes once held was gone, replaced by a mischievous glitter that made Aodhán uneasy.

  They arrived at the cafeteria a few minutes later, and Aodhán’s mouth dropped open when he stepped into the wonderland Daruk and the rest of the decoration team had created.

  The entire cafeteria had been transformed into a beautiful snowscape filled with jagged icy constructs, flowers, and frost. A thick layer of ice covered the floor and walls, turning the whole cafeteria into an ice age, and the concrete roof was replaced with a vision of space filled with stars, galaxies, shooting stars, and comets.

  Small balls of light floated around the hall, lighting up the room and lending it a romantic ambience. Beautiful flowers made entirely from imagination littered the floor, their delicate petals waving in the swirling breeze that moved about the space. The wooden chairs and tables had been moved to a partitioned corner of the cafeteria, leaving a large enough space in the center for people to dance.

  “What do you think?” Daruk asked as they all walked into the cafeteria, and Aodhán shook his head in amazement.

  “It’s absolutely amazing.”

  “I think so too.” Daruk grinned. “The ice is obviously me, although Scarlett enhanced several parts of it. The light balls are Yurin’s handwork, the swirling breeze is Halima, the flowers are Azul’s touch, and the roof is all Marcellus.”

  “How’d you get Marcellus to do anything?” Aodhán asked, still looking around in amazement.

  “I couldn’t.” Daruk chuckled. “Imani was the one who spoke to him. Perhaps they are a good pair. Don’t you think?”

  “Perhaps they are.” Aodhán replied, not quite sure he believed his own words.

  They moved around the cafeteria, staring at all the statues Daruk had made. There were quite a number of them too, ranging from beautiful dancers to snarling monsters. The details of each statue had been further enhanced by Scarlett, giving the icy figures an almost lifelike appearance. Music blasted out from somewhere, and Aodhán grinned as the entire vibe of the party suddenly improved and people began to move to the beat.

  Citing a table filled with snacks and drinks at one corner of the cafeteria, Aodhán moved towards it, followed closely by Yurin, who had been following behind him and Daruk, along with Lyra Davenport, to view the statues.

  They wove through a ton of people on their way to the savory snacks, dodging beckoning hands that tried to pull them to the dance floor, and when they finally reached the table, Yurin muttered in confusion. “These girls have never shown any interest in me before now, but all of a sudden, they want to dance?”

  Aodhán shrugged, not too concerned about Yurin’s romantic dilemma. “Perhaps they’ve never had a chance to show off their interest before, or you’ve just been too blind to see it.”

  “Oh yes, the light of my beauty must have blinded me.” Yurin rolled his eyes, and Aodhán laughed as he began piling small rolls of pies into a wooden plate. Yurin did the same, but just as they turned to head back towards the dance floor, someone shouted.

  “General! General Carnage!”

  Aodhán cringed and bit his tongue by mistake, causing Yurin and a few others near them to erupt with laughter. Aodhán took in a deep breath and turned to smile at Dihlon, who was dressed in an orange shirt that billowed around him like a nascent explosion. “Hi Dihlon, you know you can just call me Aodhán, right?”

  “Nope, where’s the fun in that?” Dihlon laughed and took a long drink out of his suspicious-looking grenade bottle.

  After the last simulation exercise, a few of his group members had taken to calling him General Carnage because of the way he and Varéc had taken out the rest of the Black Order after taking out Cyrus. The name had thankfully failed to stick, but Dihlon absolutely refused to let it go.

  “Personally, I love General Carnage better.” Yurin teased. “It has such a nice ring to it.”

  “Yeah.” Dihlon agreed heartily. “That name has got to stick one way or the other.”

  “Ascendants, I hope not.” Aodhán cringed again, and they all laughed. However, while they joked, Aodhán noticed that Dihlon’s laughter was just a touch too loud, and his face too flush to be sober. The consumption of alcohol was incredibly frowned upon considering the volatile nature of many of their abilities and affinities. Even while sober, their control was tenuous. Adding alcohol to the mix was simply courting danger.

  However, that didn’t mean that the presence of alcohol within the school’s premises was non-existent, as evidenced by Dihlon’s slightly slurred speech.

  Concerned, Aodhán reached out to steady Dihlon and said,. “Hey, you should probably ease back on the alcohol if you’re already swaying.”

  “Bah!” Dihlon pushed his hand away and steadied himself. “This is a party man, a party to celebrate the end of exams. This is literally the perfect time to indulge.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Oh, don’t be a party pooper; I’m sure Dihlon is fine.” Meredith’s voice suddenly cut into their conversation as she sidled closer to him and draped an arm around his shoulders. “Besides, he’s not even drunk yet. Are you drunk, Dihlon?”

  “Me?” Dihlon scoffed. “On this cheap wine? It would be a miracle if it even manages to make me tipsy.”

  “See?” Meredith grinned and turned back to smile at him. “Dihlon is absolutely fine. Now come and dance with me.”

  She pulled Aodhán towards the dance floor, giggling, and Yurin mimed a gagging motion before stuffing his mouth full with a bunch of savory rolls.

  The music wasn’t as fast as it had been at the Blackwell’s party, but it was upbeat enough that Aodhán had little trouble finding a rhythm. He danced, surprising himself with how fluid and coordinated his body moved.

  The music changed from time to time, and although people switched partners regularly, Meredith absolutely refused to let him go. Aodhán didn’t really mind as he was totally enjoying himself.

  All that lasted up until he caught Lupin’s gaze from across the room. To make matters worse, she was standing next to Imani, and from the glare the latter was shooting in his direction, Aodhán suspected he was the topic of discussion and certainly not in a favorable light.

  They turned away when they noticed his attention causing a pang of guilt to erupt within his chest. Ever since the Blackwell event, Aodhán had tried his best to avoid Imani, and he had succeeded for the most part. He rarely saw her aside from the times they spent in the gym, control training, or any of their compulsory classes.

  Needless to say, Aodhán still felt guilty about the whole situation. He had tried to play it off at first, but every time he saw Imani, his guilt resurfaced, and he was tired of it. He needed to rectify things, if not for her own good, then for his own peace of mind.

  Sighing, he extricated himself from Meredith and began moving towards Lupin and Imani. Lupin left the moment she noticed him coming, but Imani held her ground, turning back to stare at him cautiously as he walked over.

  “Long time no see, Aodhán,” Imani greeted with a chilly grin. “Weird greeting for people who live in the same house, don’t you think?”

  Aodhán grimaced, but rather than defend himself or give excuses, he extended a hand to Imani and said,. “I know I haven’t been a great person to you, but I’d like to apologize and make things right between us.”

  “No can do.” Imani scoffed. “I’m not interested in whatever games you’re trying to play now.”

  “I’m not playing games.”

  “Oh no,” Imani chuckled. “Wow, that’s a first. Still not interested.”

  “You know what? I get it. You don’t trust me, and you probably even hate me. I don’t blame you; however, I honestly want to rectify things between us. I’m not doing this out of pity, but because I feel like I owe you. Every time I see you, I feel guilty and shitty, and I’m sick of it. Once upon a time, you were willing to take an oath for my technique. I want to give you that technique if you still want it.”

  “W-what?!” Imani frowned in confusion, and Aodhán quickly explained.

  “It’s not a gift. I made a wrong decision a while ago to withhold my technique from you even though I only stumbled upon it from studying the manual you gave me. I want to repay you if you’re still willing to have it.”

  Imani’s eyes narrowed, and she glared at him. “What are you trying to do?”

  “I’m just trying—”

  “You’re trying to sever karma.” She cut him off and shook her head. “I should have known you wouldn’t give out your technique out of the goodness of your heart. Classic.”

  Aodhán sighed. He hadn’t really been thinking of severing karma, but now that he thought about it, that was exactly what this was. He was trying to resolve a debt and assuage his guilt, thereby severing the bond that linked him to Imani once and for all.

  “Do you want the technique or not?” He asked, not wanting to draw this out longer than it had to be.

  “I—” Imani blanched, caught between her pride and a desperate need to be strong. In the end she gave in, grudgingly reciting the oath of silence required to seal their deal, and without further ado, Aodhán passed his technique to one more person.

  Immediately he did so, Aodhán felt a weight fall off his shoulders, and he sighed blissfully. The guilt he carried concerning Imani had been resolved, and any negative karma that might have been building was severed.

  Imani’s eyes glazed over as she scrutinized her new technique in awe, but Aodhán didn’t bother waiting for her to finish reading before taking his leave. He felt much lighter than he had in a while, and with an air of excitement, he made his way back to Meredith and said, “How about we kick off where we left off?”

  Meredith giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. “For a moment there I thought you were going back to your ex.”

  “And would you be against that?” Aodhán asked.

  “Not really, as long as I still have you to myself whenever I want.”

  Aodhán smiled and shook his head. “That’s not always going to be possible.”

  “Oh, I’m aware.” She grinned and tightened her arms around him. “I’m very, very aware of that.”

  The rest of the party passed by in a blink, and before they knew it, it was already midnight. The light in the cafeteria had dimmed significantly, plunging the hall into an intimate sort of darkness that hid everyone from view. It shouldn’t have hindered Aodhán’s perception, but something weird was definitely going on with shadow essence.

  Aodhán had been dancing all night. After Meredith, he had danced with Scarlett, Gwendolyn, Aida, and finally Ayisha. Ayisha had been hesitant to get on the dance floor at all, not to mention dance with him, but Aodhán had refused to take no for an answer and had practically dragged her onto the dance floor.

  She stayed stiff in his arms, only moving anytime she sensed or foresaw him stepping on her toes. Aodhán wasn’t deterred, though. Ayisha was one of his closest friends, and he would do anything to regain the teasing hate-love friendship they had shared before.

  He guided her through a series of complex twirls, nearly causing her to tumble, and Ayisha finally glared at him. “Are you trying to break my ankles?”

  Aodhán winked. “If you weren’t so stiff, they wouldn’t be in any danger of breaking.”

  Ayisha’s glare deepened, and she scowled at him. “I’m stiff because you’ve placed me in the spotlight once again.”

  “And I won’t stop until you actually dance with me.”

  “I’m dancing.” Ayisha insisted, but Aodhán shook his head. “You’re as stiff as a rod. If this is what you call dancing, then I would hate to see you mimic a wooden rod.”

  Ayisha giggled and loosened up slightly. She was still a little formal, but Aodhán wasn’t too bothered about that. As long as his friendship with Ayisha was getting better, he didn’t care how long it took.

  He turned, guiding Ayisha through another series of complex twirls, and as expected, she completed it with ease. She was noble after all. However, just as he bent down to lift her into the air, an explosion suddenly rocked the entire cafeteria, spraying ice and water all over the place.

  Everyone ducked in fear, eyes honing in on the source of the explosion, and that was when they found Dihlon, stumbling around in the wreckage he had caused, completely drunk.

  “I’m okay.” Dihlon shouted, his words slurred. “And I’m not drunk. I promise I’m not drunk.”

  Aodhán let out a sigh and shook his head in disappointment. The explosion hadn’t been a large one, and thankfully no one was hurt, but things could have ended differently.

  “I’ll get him out of here.” Aodhán volunteered, but he had barely taken more than a few steps forward when space tore itself open and Rahim exited the swirling portal, looking very stressed and annoyed.

  He grabbed Dihlon by the neck and turned to glare at the rest of them. “That’s it. Party’s over. I have more important things to do than babysit you guys all night.”

  Groans rose up in protest, but Rahim simply waved his hand, and Aodhán felt the world shift. It tilted to the side before suddenly righting itself, hitting them all with a wave of vertigo and nausea.

  When Aodhán opened their eyes, he found himself in front of the 1st-year residential area, only a few meters away from the entrance. Students moved about drunkenly, stumbling as they struggled to regain their bearing.

  Yurin stumbled to his side and groaned. “Did Rahim just—”

  “Yes.” Aodhán nodded. “He just teleported a hundred students with a single wave of his hands.”

  “Damn! He’s strong.”

  “Yes. Yes, he is.”

  The world spun again, and Aodhán stumbled forward, searching for the nearest platform. “Fuck, I need to sit down.”