The end-of-year holiday was a welcome relief. For the first time in months, the students were allowed to leave the Academy grounds and return to their family homes. Kaelen found himself back in the sprawling, high-altitude Veyron estate, but the quiet of the mountains didn't last long. A digital ping on his new Catalyst Band revealed a message from Mina.
"Kael! My parents are heading to the Capital for a guild meeting. Come with us? Leo and Sora are already here. We're going to the Grand Core Mall!"
The Capital was the beating heart of Earth—a city of white spires and floating gardens that sat directly beneath the golden gaze of the Aurelian Singularity.
A Day of Wonders
Kaelen met his friends at the entrance of the Grand Core Mall, a structure so vast it had its own internal weather system and clouds. They spent the morning like normal kids, momentarily forgetting about levels and threads. They even went to a theater to watch a popular documentary about a Pop Idol who had reached Level 100 through the sheer resonance of her voice.
"See?" Mina said as they walked out, her eyes shining. "Success isn't just about combat or finance. It's about how much you can make the world feel your energy."
"It's about harmony," Kaelen agreed, though his eyes were scanning the crowds. He felt a strange, itchy sensation in his Crimson Thread. Something felt... off.
The Distortion
As they took a shortcut through a high-end commercial alley—a path lined with shimmering holographic advertisements—the air suddenly curdled. The golden light of the artificial sun seemed to bruise, turning a sickly purple.
"Do you feel that?" Leo asked, his orange thread flickering nervously.
Suddenly, the space in the center of the alley tore open. It wasn't a clean fold like the Motherships used; it was a jagged, violent rip. From the darkness of the rift, a massive, tusked creature stepped out. It was green-skinned, encased in crude, rusted metal armor, and carried a jagged blade that hummed with a dirty, stolen energy.
"An Orc," Sora whispered, her face pale. "From the Outskirts. They're universe-looters."
The creature was followed by three more. They weren't here to talk; they were here to harvest. They began smashing the nearby storefronts, their eyes fixed on the high-value Ribbon-crystals in the displays.
The Stand
"Mina, Sora, Leo—run!" Kaelen commanded, his voice snapping them out of their shock. "Find a security terminal and alert the City AI. Tell them there's a Dimensional Breach in Sector 4!"
"We can't leave you here!" Mina cried, her silver thread vibrating.
"Go! I can smell the portal's frequency. If it stays open, hundreds more will come through. I have to destabilize the field!"
Mina hesitated for a split second, saw the look of absolute iron in Kaelen's eyes, and grabbed the others. "We'll be back with help!"
Kaelen stood alone against the four giants. He was five years old, barely Level 20, facing creatures that could crush him with a single hand. He looked at the swirling purple rift behind them.
If I can just disrupt the portal...
Kaelen pushed his Catalyst Band to its absolute limit. He didn't just extend his thread; he forced it to vibrate at a frequency it wasn't ready for. His Crimson Thread began to glow with a blinding, white-hot intensity. He reached out, trying to "grab" the edges of the portal and pull them together.
"Ugh!" Kaelen groaned, blood trickling from his nose. His nervous system felt like it was on fire. He was overdrawing his energy, forcing his small body to act like a Level 100.
The portal flickered. It shrunk, then expanded, then groaned like a dying beast. The Orcs turned, realizing their exit—and their reinforcements—were being threatened by a tiny human child.
The Rescue
The lead Orc roared, raising its massive blade. It charged toward Kaelen, who was too exhausted to move. He had successfully stalled the portal, but he was empty. He collapsed to his knees, his vision blurring.
Just as the blade began to fall, the sky screamed.
[SECURITY ALERT: BREACH DETECTED. NEUTRALIZATION IN PROGRESS.]
The City AI took control. Automated turrets hidden in the walls of the alley deployed, firing beams of paralyzing blue light. But the real power arrived a second later.
A fifteen-meter-tall Loom-Phase Mecha crashed down from the sky, landing between Kaelen and the Orcs. The machine was a blur of white and gold, its movements fluid and terrifyingly fast.
The pilot—a Level 200+ Master—didn't even use weapons. The mecha simply swiped its hand, and the pressure of its Loom-phase aura crushed the Orcs into the ground, pinning them instantly.
"Spatial field secured," a voice boomed from the mecha's external speakers. The pilot looked down at the small boy on the ground. "Impressive work, kid. You held the door. But you almost burned your soul out doing it."
The Recovery
The next thing Kaelen knew, he was waking up to the sterile, comforting scent of high-grade healing minerals.
He was in the Royal Capital Hospital, specifically the Advanced Recovery Wing. He looked up to see his mother, Lyra, hovering over him. She wasn't just his mother right now; she was the Chief Medical Officer of the facility. Her face was a mix of immense pride and terrifying motherly anger.
"Kaelen Alrin Veyron," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "If you ever try to destabilize a dimensional rift by yourself again, I will lock you in a gravity-room until you're thirty."
"Did it work?" Kaelen rasped, his throat dry.
"It worked," a voice said from the doorway. Mina was there, her eyes red from crying, followed by Alrin. "The security service said you saved the sector. If that portal had stayed open for another minute, a War-Boss would have come through."
Alrin stepped forward, placing a hand on Kaelen's shoulder. He didn't scold him. He just looked at the medical monitors showing Kaelen's strained, but now-healing, thread.
"You acted like a Veyron," Alrin said quietly. "But your mother is right. Your body is still just a vessel of bone. You have the spirit of a King, but you need the strength to carry it."
Kaelen nodded, closing his eyes as the healing light washed over him. He had seen the Orcs, and he had seen the Master Mecha. The world was much more dangerous than the Academy had let on and he was more determined than ever to grow.