Resonance of the Soul
The Summons
Six months had sculpted Nero's frail frame into coiled muscle. Dawn light sliced through the priest academy's training grounds as Kenta Sensei cracked his knuckles, a wolf's grin spreading across his face.
"Morning, brat. Today's special—you're the curriculum."
Nero froze mid-stretch. "Sensei?"
King's orders." Kenta tossed a scroll at Nero's feet. "You're guarding the Eye of Destruction."
Nero paled. The abyssal rift where nightmares crawled out of hell. "I'm sixteen! I haven't even—"
"—kissed a girl? Tough." Kenta snagged Nero's collar before he could bolt. "Relax. You'll babysit low-risk zones with three third-years."
"Third-years?" Nero scoffed. "I mopped the floor with your seniors last week."
Kenta's fist thunked against Nero's skull. "Arrogance gets you killed out there." He kicked a wooden stake into the earth. "Break this. Ten minutes. I defend it at half-strength."
Nero's eyes narrowed. "And if I win?"
"You live."
Kenta moved.
The Dance of Death
Dust exploded as Kenta's fist cratered the ground where Nero stood half a breath earlier. Nero wove through the onslaught—Blink of Assassins blurring his form, Equity Steps fracturing the earth.
Too fast! Nero's lungs burned. Kenta was a mountain of muscle and malice, each block rattling Nero's bones.
5:00 minutes left.
"Shield of Sobek!" Nero roared. Blue flames licked his knuckles as he slammed a hidden punch into the stake.
Kenta laughed, swatting him into a wall. "Cute trick!"
Rubble rained. Blood trickled from Nero's lip. Think! A wind-chime's tinkle echoed—Ryota Sensei's lesson surfacing:
"Purity magic is resonance. Shatter the soul's harmony, and the body follows."
1:00 minute left.
Nero lunged—not at Kenta, but the earth beneath the stake. Palm down. Arbitrary Oscillation.
The ground hummed.
The Resonance Gambit
Kenta yanked the stake. It crumbled to sand.
"How?"
Nero spat blood, grinning. "Vibrations travel through contact. You touched it."
Kenta's laugh boomed. "Smartass." Then his right arm went limp. Numbness crawled up his shoulder.
Arbitrary Oscillation. The soul-shockwave had bypassed his defenses.
"You win, kid." Kenta flexed his dead fingers. "Report at dawn. And Nero?" His voice turned grave. "Out there, clever beats strong every time."
Epilogue: Whispers from the Abyss
That night, Nero packed his blade. Outside his window, shadows congealed into a figure with crimson eyes.
"The Eye awaits, Primordial's," it hissed. "Will you resonate… or break?"