“Raventor, huh?”

  He chuckled to himself.

  “Guess I’m doing a damn good job keeping the family name humble.”

  ***

  Discarding those thoughts to the back of his mind, Auron headed back to his room. Tomorrow was when training began in earnest and he wanted to get some sleep before then.

  “Stepping into his room, he slumped against the wall for a moment…breathing deeply.

  His deep violet eyes, gleaming faintly in the dim light, stared at the ceiling as if it held the secrets to life itself, trying to figure out his path forward. The soft glow of his system interface still flickered in his vision, the aftermath of his confirmed theory about beast cores .

  He was almost curious now, how his journey to power was going to unfold from here.

  But first he needed some sleep, he had a feeling he was going to need it.

  ***

  The morning sun over Glaivemire Academy was a half-hearted thing, spilling diluted gold across the academy’s skyline like it regretted showing up.

  Auron stood at the edge of the training grounds, hands behind his back as he observed the changes.

  The training grounds had shifted today—literally. Overnight, the smooth lawns and polished sparring rings were replaced by a sprawling assembly area surrounded by stone pillars humming with faint energy. There were dozens of students from his class gathering, the buzz of conversation tense, curious, and just a little afraid.

  Auron rolled his shoulders. His body felt… lighter. Not weaker—just more honed.

  A faint fragrance cut through the air, followed by Lena Rune walking into the training hall, wrapped in her usual instructor's garb, she didn’t need to raise her voice. Her presence did all the talking.

  “Listen up,” she said, eyes scanning the sea of students, while a mocking smile tugged at her doll like face.“I suppose you all think you’re hot shit now—third years on the cusp of graduation. So tell me… what haven’t you trained for?”

  "Simple, today's training, today is going to be a little different. Because today, we begin real training.”

  The murmurs quieted. Auron spotted Dante off to the side, arms folded, bronze eyes sharp with interest. Lyra stood a few paces behind him, casting a lazy demeanor like she’d already seen this coming.

  Lena paused before continuing, “You all know the worth of a secret realm but do you really think you are worthy enough to represent Glaivemire academy to contend for it?"

  Her eyes locked briefly on Auron. For a second, he thought she’d call him out. But she moved on.

  "This is why I've decided to spice up the training this time...". She let the words hang for a little while before she continued...for this class your training will commence in the inner Wastelands.”

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  Gasps rippled through the crowd. One boy near the front straightened, blinking. “Wait- what...the actual Wastelands? Like… the monster-infested zone?”

  “No,” Lena said dryly. “The other one filled with fluffy butterflies and bedtime stories.”

  Auron smirked despite himself.

  Lena gestured to the glowing pillars. “These runes are tuned to teleportation anchors scattered across certain points in the Wastelands. Each team will be dropped at specified points. No instructors, no safety nets.”

  Someone in the crowd swallowed audibly.

  “You survive, you adapt, you hone your skills and grow. Or you don’t.” She shrugged. “Either way, the weak will eliminate themselves.”

  A girl in the back raised her hand. “How long do we stay out there?”

  Lena smiled faintly. “ Two weeks.”

  A heavy silence dropped like an anvil.

  “W-What if someone’s injured? Or dying?” another asked.

  “Then I’ll step in,” Lena said casually. “Right after you're almost dead. Not before.”

  Right after.

  Auron caught several glances thrown his way. No beast. No contract. No support system. They thought he’d die out there.

  He wasn’t offended. He got it.

  He didn’t have a beast.

  And in this world, that was like showing up to a war with a wooden spoon.

  Lena began pacing. “Think of it like some sort of kindness, no...more like a crucible. When the time comes for you if you eventually qualify to face the secret realm trials , you'll realise no amount of lecture hall theory will save you.”

  Her boots halted. “Out there, you’ll either grow fangs… or get eaten.”

  Auron’s blood thrummed faintly.

  But wasn't this a bit... extreme ?

  Lena pulled out a small obsidian token. With a flick, she activated it—and shimmering portals bloomed from the runes in timed pulses, humming with raw dimensional energy.

  “In groups of five, step forward when your name is called,” she ordered. “Team compositions are locked. You don’t get to choose your squadmates.”

  Students began filing into lines, anxiety thick in the air.

  “Auron Raventor,” Lena called.

  Heads turned.

  Before one girl shrieked, her voice slicing through the tension like a whip, voicing out what had been on everyone's mind,"Wait...why is he even here? To serve himself as breakfast to the beasts in the wastelands?"

  Lena looked half amusedly at the girl, before voicing out,"I wouldn't be worried about him if i were you."

  "Huh? What was that supposed to mean,"before she could continue, Lena continued calling names, cutting off her thoughts.

  “Lyra Ashford, Dante, Max Reed and Asha Ariel .”

  As the rest of his supposed squad gathered, Auron glanced to the side. Dante raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing. Lyra offered him a smirk.

  Asha and Max were pretty much what Auron looked at as members of his class he didn't particularly give a shit about, not that he cared about anybody in the first place, they were more like background characters in Auron’s eyes—useful maybe, but he wouldn’t bet lunch money on them.”.

  “You’ll be Group 17,” Lena said. “Try not to get anyone killed.”

  Lyra raised her hand. “Do we get a map?”

  “You get instincts. If you’re lucky, someone on your team actually uses them.”

  Lyra lowered her hand. “Worth a shot.”

  One by one, the groups were called. Some students looked excited. Most looked like they were being led to an execution chamber.

  Then came the part Auron had been waiting for.

  Someone near the back—a younger girl, whose name he had surprisingly forgotten with sun-streaked hair—suddenly had enough.

  "I ain't going to this weird training, you set up in the inner wastelands, what do you think you're training us for, cause it sure looks as if your leading us to die? Right guys?" She voiced out, a smirk begging to be wiped off her face. Clearly this was one of those spoiled rich noble's daughter or something.

  She made her way out of the training grounds.

  The crowd froze.

  Lena didn’t blink.

  With a lazy snap of her fingers, a net of spectral chains erupted from the nearest obelisk, snagging the girl mid-stride and yanking her back like a puppet. She landed in a pile of flailing limbs and high-pitched shrieks.

  Lena tilted her head. “Anyone else feel the sudden urge to test my patience?”

  No one moved.

  “Good. Then let’s proceed.”

  Portals flared brighter.

  One by one, the groups stepped into them—into the Wastelands, into chaos, into the deep, raw hunger of the wild.

  Then it was their turn.

  Auron’s pulse slowed, steady as a drumbeat. No hesitation.

  “Let’s move,” he said, already stepping into the glow.

  Dante followed wordlessly. Lyra rolled her neck and yawned. “Gods, I hope we fight something fun.”

  Asha looked pale. Max just tightened his grip on his staff, like it was going to save his life. Maybe he planned to smack monsters to death with it. Hope he had better ideas.”

  .

  The world twisted.

  Auron felt the pull of space unwind and reknit.

  And then—

  They were there.

  ***

  The Wastelands were nothing like the academy.

  The sky above was a bruised violet, cut through with orange streaks of perpetual dusk. The air smelled of ozone, sulfur, and something old. Very old. The ground beneath their feet was cracked stone and patches of black grass, like the world itself had suffered a wound that never healed.

  In the distance, mountain peaks loomed like sleeping giants. Shadows moved within them.

  Auron crouched instantly, scanning their surroundings. No movement. No immediate threats.

  Dante did the same. “No welcome party. That’s either good or bad.”

  “Probably bad,” Lyra said, already tying her hair back. “Place feels cursed.”

  “It is cursed,” Max muttered.

  They were on their own now.

  No instructors. No rules. No mercy.

  Just five students dropped into a land that didn’t care whether they lived or nearly died.

  Auron

  stood slowly, the wind ruffling his hair. Somewhere far off, a shriek echoed across the land—inhuman and furious.

  He didn’t flinch.

  “This wasn’t training. This was war. And Auron was ready.”