The academy bell had yet to ring.
A cool breeze drifted across the empty training grounds, carrying the scent of damp earth from the previous night's rain.
Tovin sat alone atop the stone wall surrounding one of the unused practice fields.
His eyes wandered.
Not aimlessly.
Patiently.
Students slowly emerged from the dormitories.
Some walked alone.
Others in groups.
Some laughed.
Others looked exhausted before the day had even begun.
"...Too much energy."
He muttered it under his breath before letting out a quiet yawn.
Nothing ever seemed to surprise people.
They rushed.
They panicked.
They chased things that felt important.
Yet tomorrow they would repeat the exact same routine.
The thought almost made him smile.
Almost.
---
A familiar figure entered the training grounds.
Kael.
He carried no weapon.
He never had.
He stretched his shoulders before stepping in front of a battered training dummy.
One breath.
One punch.
The impact echoed across the field.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Every strike looked almost identical.
Tiny adjustments.
A fraction of a step.
A slight change in the angle of his shoulder.
A quicker recovery.
Small improvements.
Most people would never notice them.
Tovin did.
"...Different."
His voice was barely audible.
Kael suddenly stopped.
Instead of continuing his punches...
He stepped backwards.
Closed his eyes.
Then slowly began visualising an opponent.
His feet moved first.
Then his shoulders.
His hands followed.
He wasn't attacking the dummy anymore.
He was fighting something that only existed in his mind.
Tovin watched quietly.
"...Interesting."
---
Lessons came and went.
Nothing remarkable happened.
Students answered questions.
Others failed to answer at all.
Instructor Vaelis corrected mistakes with the same stern expression he always wore.
The classroom remained unchanged.
The students remained unchanged.
Or so it appeared.
Tovin's eyes drifted across the room.
One student had become more confident.
Another had begun relying too heavily on raw power.
Someone else had stopped asking questions entirely.
People changed far more often than they realised.
---
When classes ended, the training grounds quickly filled.
Dren was already there.
He stood opposite Kael.
"No abilities?" Dren asked.
Kael nodded.
"Same as always."
Dren grinned.
"First hit wins?"
"Fine."
The match began.
Dren rushed first.
His footing was steadier than before.
His balance cleaner.
His movements wasted less energy.
Kael slipped past the first strike.
Then the second.
He didn't counter.
Only observed.
The third attack came.
Kael stepped inside Dren's guard.
A light tap against Dren's shoulder.
"Point."
Dren sighed.
"I knew that was coming."
Kael smiled faintly.
"You leaned too far."
"I always do."
"You used to."
Dren blinked.
"...Did I?"
"You fixed it."
For a brief moment, confusion crossed Dren's face.
Then he laughed.
"I guess I did."
The two resumed training.
Tovin watched from beneath the shade of a tree.
"...Good."
---
Later that afternoon...
The academy had grown unusually quiet.
Most students had returned indoors.
Tovin wandered toward one of the abandoned practice fields.
No instructors.
No students.
Exactly how he preferred it.
He crouched beside a small stone resting in the dirt.
His fingers lightly brushed its surface.
A gentle flick.
The pebble rolled forward.
Nothing unusual.
Then...
It began spinning.
Faster.
The rotation tightened.
Dust lifted from the ground.
A few loose leaves drifted toward it.
The air around the pebble seemed to hum ever so slightly.
Tovin narrowed his eyes.
The second the rotation became unstable...
He snapped his fingers.
Everything stopped.
The leaves fluttered harmlessly back to the ground.
The dust settled.
Silence returned.
"...Still not enough."
He picked the pebble up.
For a long moment...
He simply stared at it.
Then slipped it into his pocket.
---
Evening approached.
The academy courtyard glowed beneath rows of lanterns.
Students slowly disappeared into their dormitories.
Laughter echoed in the distance.
Someone celebrated passing an evaluation.
Others complained about tomorrow's assignments.
Life continued.
Unaware.
Tovin rested against a stone pillar.
His gaze found Kael once again.
The No-Path sat beneath a tree.
Book open.
Notebook beside him.
Completely absorbed.
The training grounds had emptied hours ago.
Yet he was still studying.
Still searching.
Still trying to understand.
"...You're impatient."
Kael looked up.
Seeing no one nearby, he simply returned to reading.
Tovin let out a quiet breath.
"...Maybe that's a good thing."
For the first time in days...
A faint smile appeared.
Small enough that no one would notice.
Brief enough that even he barely acknowledged it.
He pushed himself away from the pillar and began walking back toward the dormitories.
The academy hadn't changed.
The students believed tomorrow would be just another ordinary day.
Tovin looked once over his shoulder.
At the boy still reading beneath the fading light.
"...Keep going."
The words disappeared into the evening breeze.
No one heard them.
And Tovin intended to keep it that way.