The energy from Awakening Day lingered long after the ceremony ended. Students spilled out of Central City Academy in loud clusters, replaying their results like highlights from a tournament.
Chen Wei was practically glowing. "I'm telling you, B-Tier wind is underrated. Flexible. Adaptable. Stylish. I can already imagine my entrance into the dungeon."
"You tripped walking into the formation," Kai reminded him.
"That was momentum build-up."
Zhao Min walked calmly beside them, hands folded behind her back. "You two are impossible."
Wei nudged Kai. "Still though. Black Ice. That's insane. Even the instructors looked confused."
Kai shrugged lightly. "It's just a name."
"'Just a name,' he says," Wei muttered.
They reached the transit intersection where their routes split. Wei turned around and pointed dramatically. "Saturday. Dungeon registration. No excuses."
"Normal difficulty," Min said.
"Normal," Kai agreed.
Wei grinned. "Look at him already planning his world domination."
Kai didn't deny it.
The Lin residence was quiet when he entered. His father was already home, seated at the dining table reviewing patrol assignments on a floating display. He didn't look up immediately.
"Black Ice," Commander Lin Zhao said casually. "Interesting name."
"You heard?"
"I was at the plaza."
Right.
Of course he was.
Kai took his seat.
"It feels different," he said honestly.
His father nodded. "All new talents do."
There was no lecture. No dramatic warning. Just calm acknowledgment.
"Control it before you push it," his father added. "Unknown things behave unexpectedly."
"I will."
Dinner was simple and quiet. They spoke about academy schedules, patrol rotations, and the usual small details of city life. At one point his father mentioned that the southern perimeter had seen slightly increased beast movement lately.
"Seasonal shift," he said. "Nothing serious yet."
Kai listened carefully but didn't react.
After dinner, the house settled into its usual calm. His father returned to his study. The city lights flickered steadily beyond the window.
Kai closed his room door and took the black notebook from his drawer.
It still looked ordinary.
He opened it anyway.
Day 0. Awakening complete. A-Tier.
Day 14. Southern Perimeter breach. Father does not return.
He stared at the words for a moment.
Then he closed it.
No dramatic tension. No cold sweat. Just a quiet decision forming.
"If it says fourteen days," he murmured, "then I've got fourteen days."
He stood and extended his hand.
Black frost gathered slowly along his fingers. It wasn't flashy. It didn't explode outward. It formed like ink spreading through water—dark, steady, controlled.
He tried spreading it wide.
Energy drained faster than expected.
He pulled it back.
Then he tried something different.
Instead of expanding it outward, he focused on keeping it tight. Compact. Pressed inward.
The frost deepened in color.
Interesting.
He picked up a practice blade from his rack and coated the edge lightly. The metal darkened.
First swing—too much output.
Second swing—better.
Third—he kept the frost thin and steady.
He pressed the blade against a reinforced training block.
The surface didn't just freeze.
It stiffened.
A faint line formed along the contact point.
He raised an eyebrow.
"So you like being compact," he muttered.
He withdrew the frost before pushing further.
There was no manual for this. No senior to explain how it should behave. Which meant he would have to figure it out carefully.
He sat at his desk and opened the city patrol logs. Southern perimeter. Sector 3. Routine reports. Beast movements. Nothing alarming.
If something happened on Day 14, it wouldn't look dramatic at first.
It would look normal.
That was how most problems began.
He leaned back in his chair and twirled the practice blade lightly between his fingers.
Fourteen days wasn't enough to become a hero.
But it was enough to prepare properly.
Dungeon runs. Controlled growth. Information gathering.
He glanced once more at the notebook.
No new words appeared.
"Alright," he said softly.
"Let's bend it."
Outside, the city remained bright and alive, completely unaware that someone had just decided to quietly challenge fate.