He sat alone in his cramped room, moonlight illuminating the list of names before him. There were five names marked with the princess's faint sigil. Not just names, Selene had also included brief details—departments, years, and their family affiliations.
- Marcus val-Lorian: Second year, Department of Knights. From the rival House val-Argent (Seraphina's family).
- Fiona Meadowbrook: Third year, Department of Life Magic. Known to have connections with the anti-imperial movement in the southern provinces.
...and so on.
Heze's mind processed the information coldly. This was not an order to kill. That would be too crude for a strategist like Selene. This was an order to defeat and humiliate them on the academy's grandest stage: the upcoming Inter-Department Tournament. By defeating them, Nihil would indirectly weaken the influence of the factions affiliated with them. He was the stone Selene had thrown to create political ripples.
"Becoming a weapon..." he muttered to himself.
His first step was intelligence. He sought out Silas the next day, giving him most of his duel prize money.
"I need everything you have on these five names," said Nihil. "Not just their duel records. I want to know their habits, their fears, what magic they're secretly practicing, rumors about them. I want to know how to dismantle them from the inside out."
Silas stared at the list of names, his eyes widening. "You're going after some big fish, Lord Nihil. This will take time and... cost."
"Do it," said Nihil before leaving.
His second step was preparation. The tournament was team-based. His team—dubbed "The Anomaly Team" by other students—consisted of himself, Celia, Gideon, Lian, and Finn. A group of outsiders. He knew he had to be their strategic core. And for that, he needed new tools.
He spent his nights in the private training warehouse. He wasn't practicing swordsmanship. He wasn't practicing Resonance Shield. He was creating something born from necessity.
Analysis: In team battles, visibility and positional awareness are key. Illusions, smoke, and surprise attacks are the biggest threats.
Hypothesis: My Void power nullifies matter and energy. If I send out a thin wave of this energy, it will pass through empty air but be "nullified" upon contact with solid objects. The difference between the returning absence and the absence that doesn't return will create a "echo map."
Method: Conceptual Refining for a new skill.
He stood in the middle of the dark room, eyes closed. He extended his hand and released a thin, omnidirectional wave of Void energy.
[Activating New Application: Void Sonar]
[Capacity: 40/40 -> 38/40]
For a fraction of a second, nothing happened. Then, a rough three-dimensional map formed in his mind. He could 'see' the contours of the walls, practice pillars, even a mouse hiding in the corner. It was a perfect radar, undetectable by any magic.
As he was refining his new skill, the warehouse door opened. Kenjiro of the Iron Peaks stood there, his wooden sword in hand.
"I've seen you training every night," said Kenjiro calmly. "You don't train like a fighter. You train like an assassin."
"There's no difference if the goal is to win," replied Nihil.
Kenjiro shook his head. "There is. A fighter seeks strength. An assassin seeks weaknesses. Your style is efficient, but it lacks a core. No philosophy."
"My philosophy is survival."
"Survival is an instinct, not a code of ethics," countered Kenjiro. "We will meet in the tournament. I look forward to seeing if you've found your code of ethics by then."
He bowed slightly and left, leaving Nihil with strange thoughts. Code of ethics. Philosophy. These were luxury concepts Heze had never had time to consider.
A few days later, the tournament committee announced the match schedule. The Anomaly Team, with the lowest combined rankings, was placed at the bottom.
Their first match: against a team from the Department of Knights. Their leader: Marcus val-Lorian. The first name on the princess's list.
Nihil gazed at the schedule. Selene was not one to waste time. His first lesson would soon begin.
In a luxurious room at one of Solara Magna's most exclusive inns, Velka Nocturne stared at the man across from her with a mix of disbelief and hostility.
Duke Alaric, her father's greatest political rival, sat calmly across the table, pouring tea as if they were old friends.
"I know you have many questions, Miss Velka," said Duke Alaric, his calm and authoritative voice contrasting with the chaos Velka had just escaped. "Ask them."
"Why?" was the only word that managed to escape Velka's lips. "Why did you save me? Our families are enemies."
Alaric offered a thin smile. "Rivals, young lady. Not enemies. Your father and I are fighting for different visions of the Empire's future. I believe in the strength of councils and alliances, while he believes in absolute power and tradition. But neither of us wants to see the Empire burn."
He set down his teacup. "And your father's recent actions... have been very reckless. He's lost control of the situation. He hired a mercenary, who now blackmails him. He's allowed your brother, your younger brother, to become the center of a political firestorm at the academy. And he's completely blind to the real threat from the Cult of Nullity that's after you."
Velka listened, each word making sense.
"I didn't save you out of kindness," Alaric continued, his sharp eyes piercing Velka. "I saved you for stability. If that Cult succeeds in capturing you, a scion of House Nocturne, and uses you in their rituals, the chaos that would follow could spark a civil war. If your uncontrollable brother explodes in the capital, the result would be the same."
"My goal is to contain this crisis before it consumes us all," he said. "And to do that, I need someone inside House Nocturne who can think clearly. Someone like you."
This was his offer. An unimaginable alliance.
"You want me to be your eyes," Velka asked coldly.
"I want you to be a partner," Alaric corrected. "I will provide you with protection, resources, and information your father would never give you. In return, you give me insight into what's truly happening within your family. What Valerius is really planning. And most importantly, what your brother's true abilities are."
This was betrayal of her father, to save her brother and, perhaps, her family. Velka remembered her father's cold face, Alban's cruelty, and the suffering she saw in Nihil's eyes.
"I have one condition," Velka said, her voice now steady. "My brother's safety is the top priority. He's not a monster to be exterminated or a weapon to be used. He's my family."
Duke Alaric regarded her for a long moment, then nodded. "A condition I can accept. For now."
Their fragile alliance was formed.
"Then let's begin," Alaric said, his tone now shifting to business. "Your first step is to gather information. There's one loose thread you can pull. The mercenary hired and betrayed by your father, Tarek Mornhall. According to my intelligence, The Silencer is now hunting him. Tarek is hiding like a rat in The Undercroft."
"A desperate man filled with resentment toward your father," Alaric continued with a thin smile. "He might be a very... informative conversationalist. I can arrange a safe meeting for you."
Velka nodded. She no longer felt like a frightened victim. For the first time, she felt like a player. She had a powerful, albeit dangerous, protector, and she had her first mission.
She would return to the underworld. Not as prey, but as a hunter of truth.