I walked away indignantly, turning back one last time out of mere curiosity.
I was walking through the hallways at night when I heard an unintelligible whisper.
I approached the place slowly, preparing for any fight.
There was a boy lying on the ground, covered with several wounds and bruises, surrounded by what seemed like a gang.
"Listen, I want to be clear: I need your help with the investigation—"
Before he could finish, I stepped out of the darkness.
"Can I know what you're doing?"
The boy who had been speaking clicked his tongue and stopped.
"Catch him!"
Several students lunged at me while a barrier blocked all possible exits.
—This wasn't a good idea— I immediately realized.
The coordinated attacks from mages more skilled than me soon managed to subdue me.
I looked into the face of the person responsible while several students held me by the arms.
"You must be Mateo, right?"
I smiled ironically.
"Yes, and what do you intend to do? Kill me in the academy?"
The boy laughed loudly.
"No, of course not, that would be impossible.
Even now evading the academy's surveillance is complicated, which is why I intend to convince you."
My face filled with ferocity.
"Join a trash group like you?"
I felt a strong blow to my face.
"Listen, this is bigger than you think, that's why—"
Footsteps came from behind.
The boy raised his head toward the source of the sound.
Growing closer, he made a finger signal to coordinate his companions.
A mysterious figure with a long staff like a wand was bathed in the light of the rising moon emerging from a window.
Within seconds, the students mobilized, attacking in a coordinated manner.
Six mages lunged, moving along the walls.
The one moving on the ceiling descended with a diagonal fist strike, which he easily dodged.
Three people confronted him from the front, and two from behind.
In an instant, the tables turned.
The mage moved quickly forward, hitting the stomach of one of the three in front.
Blood came out of his mouth as he crashed into the left wall.
The mage on the left side of the wall managed to evade his companion but left an opening.
The mage took advantage of this, lunging at him and crashing him into the wall while grabbing his neck.
Several blows were directed at the mysterious mage but a small circular barrier blocked all of them.
A halo of flashing white light crashed against all the mages behind him, who fell unconscious to the ground.
All the attackers met the same fate.
"Who are you?"
I asked, scared.
He just turned around, leaving us behind while the attackers' bodies began transforming into light to disappear.
I watched the scene stunned.
The boy behind me, severely beaten, seemed to have the same expression of bewilderment, but his body was covered with painful wounds.
"Haha," he laughed tiredly.
"That was incredible."
I grabbed him, putting his arm around my neck and supporting him with my shoulder and hand on his ribs.
I guided him to the infirmary.
"Do you know why they are attacking you?"
He only shook his head.
I gave up trying to get information from him.
"Something strange is happening at the academy."
I said to Diego while walking through the academy.
"You've noticed it too?"
Diego closed his eyes and opened them gently.
"Now I understand what my father said about mages."
I looked at him curiously.
"What did he say?"
Diego looked at me with an ironic smile.
"The power to change the world at will corrupts them.
That's why my father never wanted me to come to Solaris."
I exhaled through my nose with irony.
Camila was acting strange; she was hiding what she had talked about with the president.
She also disappeared at certain hours and was distancing herself more and more from Lucia and me.
After the academy attack, she had opened her eyes.
We understood that Professor Raul had been corrupted by power—or that was the conclusion Lucia, Camila, and I had reached.
I was afraid Camila would be corrupted by this environment just like Raul, especially because she had begun to act in such a strange way.
That's why I had to convince her to leave Solaris and go with me to any other safer and quieter academy.
While thinking about all this, I found again the person from yesterday lying on the ground.
I smiled maliciously, only to approach again.
I touched his shoulder, and seeing that he didn't wake, I immediately cast magic.
Just like yesterday, a sharp point nearly pierced my neck, but I was unmoved.
"You shouldn't sleep here; it's dangerous."
She wiped the drool with bandages and stood up quickly.
"Who are you? Ah! You're the same one from yesterday!"
She said while pointing her free hand at me.
"How are you?"
I raised my hand in greeting.
"I see you're as sleepy as yesterday," I said with an ironic smile.
"For God's sake!"
She moved away angrily.
While paying attention to the people who participated in the class, I found the same person in the hallways after looking for her carefully.
"Hey, why do you sleep in the hallways? Don't you realize how dangerous the academy is now?"
She looked at me surprised.
"You! Are you harassing me or something?"
I laughed mockingly.
She immediately sighed.
"Whatever, just let me sleep a little."
She lay down on the table, entering a deep sleep.
I walked again at night, afraid.
But currently, killing in the academy was impossible, especially with the director here.
I wanted to get evidence that would allow me to convince Camila to leave the academy.
I was sure I would find it here.
With borrowed recording instruments and recording spells, I ventured into places the map did not identify.
According to Diego, no one knew where the academy ended, nor had everyone visited all the secret doors hidden in this invisible area.
[Research Room]
I touched the door, placing a subtle magic to notify me if someone moved or touched the door.
I continued like this at all the doors that said [Research], when suddenly one of the doors where I had placed a mark disappeared.
I ran quickly to the place and silently approached, making sure no barriers existed.
Just as I was about to activate the recording magic, I felt something approach behind me.
I dodged the attack from behind and quickly began to flee.
But the figure behind me was faster.
I was caught within seconds after having taken a photo of him with a camera.
When he caught me, I shouted, "Don't come near me!"
He was half a meter away.
"See this!"
I pointed to my own chest.
"If you dare try to capture me, I will explode it from the inside."
I smiled defiantly.
I didn't know how seriously he was taking the defense of the academy, but these suits had a special mechanism:
When someone died clinically or their magic disappeared completely, it sent a signal to the teachers and the director.
I didn't know how strong this guy was, but I definitely couldn't beat the strongest mage in the world.
I put a pill in my mouth just to be more sure he wouldn't dare do anything reckless.
I began to back away until I lost myself in the dark hallways.
"See this, Camila!"
The photo was blurry and distorted in the part where that strange figure should have appeared.
"What?"
She looked at the photo with a question mark over her head, puzzled by the strange photo I had taken.
"There are bad people in this place.
We can't stay here any longer.
Who knows what's happening here."
She sighed like she found this tiring.
"I will join the student council," she said seriously and determinedly.
My face twisted.
"Why?!"
Joining the student council meant putting yourself in danger.
"It's my duty; you know that well, that's why I'm so strong.
Don't try to stop me."
It was the first time I had ever seen her so serious.
I kept the words I was about to say to myself.
"You don't have to do it; you're just a person, not a protector."
My words didn't seem to reach Camila, who remained serious without saying a word.
Nothing I said would make her change her mind.
She didn't even question where I had obtained that photo, which worried me.
I had long since stopped trying to become stronger.
Since Shadow gave me that proposal, I understood how useless strength was.
"Are you there?"
I said to the figure that was following me from behind.
"Is this some kind of power game between organizations, countries, or maybe..."
I said while keeping my hand behind my back.
The figure rushed toward me without fear and with dizzying speed.
I crushed the bomb behind my back.
A great light illuminated the entire place, blinding me for a moment.
But that moment was enough.
I strengthened my whole body and like a cannonball jumped backward as hard as I could in an attempt to flee.
But he caught up with me quickly.
"Diego!"
An invisible wall appeared between us as a barrier was created.
Several students appeared from the most hidden places.
"Did you think we wouldn't be able to face you?
Although the council is already investigating you, we will make sure to capture you."
I spoke with a big smile.
Although his face was hidden, somehow I could sense that he thought I should be feeling some fear.
"What will you do now?"
Once the academy discovers his misdeeds, I will try to convince Camila's parents, asserting that the academy isn't safe—even with the director guarding it.
I owed my friend a lot, so I had to get her out of here, even if she didn't want to.
"You may wonder how we managed to evade your gaze?"
It was a strategy that began from day one.
Several students had already been attacked before, and they were forbidden from leaving the dormitory.
The student who had been coerced into supporting some shady experiment came up with a clever way to send a message.
Normally, students mark the classes they have to attend through magic, just as I did with the door.
They use it as a timetabling system; when the class starts, the door gets marked, and all of this follows a pattern in the mage's mind — like lights turning on and off.
The same applies to any type of object by marking personal items and spreading them around the academy.
Slowly, we realized that they followed a pattern.
Upon realizing the academy's situation, several mages began to unite slowly, sending patterns we quickly collected and stored without raising suspicion.
This spell system for marking things is something all mages use, so it was complicated to track and examine.
The exits for the mage were blocked; he was completely surrounded.
A sudden overwhelming speed appeared in a familiar person.
The mysterious mage was hit directly but withstood the attack without difficulty.
"I'll handle this,"
Camila said seriously.
"Make sure to keep the barrier so he can't escape."
I smiled confidently, sure that Camila would win.
The students who trusted me blindly nodded and opened the way for Camila to face the invader.