The weather was annoyingly perfect.
Warm sunlight. Soft wind. Birds chirping. Basically everything that made it harder to pretend I wasn't… actually in a good mood.
Weird.
I'd been feeling lighter all morning. Not relaxed—just… less on guard. Ever since the aura training with Aldred started making sense, it felt like my thoughts weren't crushing me from the inside anymore.
Class 1-S seemed to notice immediately.
"Rain. You're smiling."
Kazen pointed an arrow at me like that was some kind of crime.
"I'm… not?" I said.
"You definitely are," Varein added, staring like I'd grown a second head.
Even Theon leaned in, squinting aggressively. "Yeah, you are. Hey—don't tell me you hit your head again?"
I shoved his face away. "Stop breathing on me."
"See? That's normal Rain," Theon nodded sagely.
Seraphyne crossed her arms, expression firm but eyes glinting with amusement. "He smiles once and everyone loses their minds. You're all dramatic."
"You say that," Aelira murmured, "but you were staring too."
Seraphyne immediately looked away. "Shut up."
The whole class burst out laughing, and for once, I didn't feel like shrinking into a corner.
This… was actually nice.
Aldred assigned "independent aura practice," which meant:
– He left,
– anxd we instantly stopped acting like respectable students.
Varein practiced spear forms nearby, calm as ever. I could feel his quiet support just being close.
Kazen and Aelira were arguing over something about accuracy.
Kai was polishing his katana while muttering about surpassing me.
Liraeth was lecturing Arion about something he obviously wasn't listening to.
And Theon—
"RAIN! SPAR ME!"
He charged at me with his greatsword like a rabid bull.
"You're supposed to ask before swinging at someone!"
He laughed like a maniac and swung anyway. I dodged, barely, his blade carving a crater into the dirt.
Seraphyne sighed dramatically. "Theon, if you break Rain again, do you know how much paperwork Sir Aldred will have to fill out?"
"None! Because he'll dodge it!"
"Then I'll break you," she said sweetly.
Theon immediately stopped attacking.
"…Yes ma'am."
I snorted.
This class was ridiculous.
I sat cross-legged and focused on pulling aura into my core, letting it circulate like Aldred taught me.
Inhale.
Focus.
Control the flow.
Let it stabilize—
THUD.
A body landed next to me.
I opened my eyes.
Arion lay face-down in the dirt.
"Liraeth hit you again?" I asked.
"Mmmrrgh…"
He lifted a shaky thumbs-up.
Liraeth towered over him, mace in hand. "He said he could block my swing."
"…Can't blame him for optimism," I muttered.
Arion groaned.
I tried focusing again.
Inhale—
Aura rising—
Stabilizing—
Centering—
"RAIN LOOK LOOK LOOK!!"
Kazen ran by at full speed, chased by Aelira who looked two seconds away from stabbing him. Politely of course.
"He STOLE my ribbon!" she yelled.
"It was on the ground I was RETURNING IT—AHH!"
She launched a rapier strike that nearly shaved his hair.
My aura destabilized and sputtered out.
"…I hate all of you," I said flatly.
Varein made a thoughtful noise. "Want me to tell them to quiet down?"
"No," I sighed. "They'll argue about who should shut up first and somehow get louder."
He considered that. "Fair."
Once their chaos moved far enough away, I finally had some space.
I inhaled, focusing again.
Let the core pull in aura.
Let it settle.
Let it flow—
This time, something clicked.
Not violently like before.
Not like a storm about to tear me apart.
Just a quiet shift.
A steady pulse.
My light-blue aura flickered around me in a faint glow, crackling with thin lines of white.
Controlled.
Smooth.
Calm.
For the first time… it didn't hurt.
"Huh," I whispered.
It felt warm.
Alive.
Like my aura finally understood what I wanted from it.
"Rain…?"
I opened my eyes. Varein stood there, spear lowered, watching me with a small smile.
"You did it."
Seraphyne approached too, expression composed but eyes bright. "Took you long enough."
Theon grinned. "HELL YEAH, RAIN!"
Their reactions made my chest feel strangely… warm.
Like maybe I wasn't climbing alone.
I stood, dispelling my aura. Everyone was still watching me—some smiling, some quietly nodding, some pretending not to care.
Then Theon tripped over absolutely nothing and face-planted.
Silence.
Then:
"BRO, THE GROUND BETRAYED ME—!"
I don't know why it was so funny.
Maybe it was the stress.
Maybe it was the mood.
Maybe it was just Theon being Theon.
But a laugh slipped out of me.
A real one.
Loud.
Unrestrained.
Genuine.
Everyone froze.
Kazen dropped his bow.
Aelira stared.
Liraeth blinked like she'd witnessed a miracle.
Even Kai's jaw dropped.
"…Rain?" Varein whispered.
Seraphyne's eyes widened slightly. Then—she smiled.
Not big. Not dramatic. Just a small, warm smile.
Theon rose to his feet triumphantly. "SEE?! I KNEW I COULD MAKE YOU LAUGH!"
"You didn't do anything," I said.
"I EXISTED. YOU'RE WELCOME."
I snorted again.
Class 1-S erupted into laughter.
And for the first time…
I didn't feel like the Boy of Promise.
Or a threat.
Or a symbol.
Just a kid.
Laughing with the people climbing the same mountain as me.
It was… nice.
Really nice.