The hall was silent except for the echo of the herald's voice.
Neel was the first to step forward. His posture was straight, his eyes steady—though the faintest glimmer of pride shone in them.
Kaivara looked down at the young man and said,
"Neel, you are hereby assigned to the Fifth Position under the direct guidance of my assistant."
A ripple of whispers moved through the audience. It was no small honor to be placed under the shadow of Raigon, the current holder of the Lunar Zenith.
But before the murmurs could settle, a sudden, crushing wave of energy slammed through the hall.
It wasn't a normal disturbance—this was the violent aura of top-level Kalaraks, so strong that even the air seemed to warp under its weight.
Rudraen's eyes narrowed.
"Does the new Noxian not have any control over their Kalaraks?" he muttered.
The energy swelled further, and the crowd's attention snapped to the fact that the Kalaraks weren't lashing out at anyone—except one person.
Ariv.
Every single Kalarak seemed to focus solely on him, their killing intent cutting like blades through the space between them.
But just as they began to surge forward, something happened—
And the scene cut to black.