The descent proved less torturous than the ascent, but Kage's body hadn't received that message. After limping down that day, he dragged himself back to the Infirmary. The nurse's eyes widened when she saw him shuffling through the door.

"Why are you back already?"

Kage explained his situation—demanded to be wrapped up for several more days. His bones must have fractured again, cracked like improperly refined Qi through overtaxed meridians. The woman ran more tests and confirmed his suspicion, leaving her no choice but to bind him up once more, especially his legs.

He also mentioned his growing suspicion about becoming a regular fixture at the place.

***

After spending over a month with him, Nurse Ayesha had discovered Kage to be a peculiar creature—strange enough that she'd stopped interrogating him about his body's impossible resilience.

She simply sighed, shook her head, and muttered something about "impossible children" while wrapping his legs with the practiced efficiency of someone who'd repeated this ritual far too many times. Her hands moved with the same careful precision a Weaver might use threading delicate patterns—gentle around the fractures, exact with the bandaging.

"You know," she said on the fifth morning, bringing him breakfast of rice porridge and pickled vegetables, "in my twenty years here, I've never had a student fracture the same bones twice within a month. You're setting records for all the wrong reasons."

Kage accepted the bowl, grimacing slightly. "At least I'm memorable."

"Memorable isn't always good, child." She perched on the edge of his bed, her severe features softening by a fraction. "The other students—they've been talking. Wondering where you disappeared to. Some think you failed and slunk home. Others think..." She trailed off, eyes searching his face like a scholar hunting for hidden meaning in ancient texts.

"Think what?"

"That you died in the Silent Grove. With the Impure." Her voice dropped to a murmur. "They found the body, you know. What remained of it. The whispers say someone killed it—but no one knows who."

Kage kept his expression neutral, spooning porridge into his mouth as though she'd commented on the weather.

Ayesha studied him for a long moment, then stood. "Your results will be posted today. End of afternoon. Every accepted student's name will appear on the Seven Towers—sorted by tier and assigned dormitory."

She paused at the doorway.

"I hope you're ready for what comes next, Kage-kun. The academy isn't kind to those who stand out. And something tells me you're going to stand out quite a bit."

***

The afternoon sun slanted through the infirmary windows when the bells began to ring.

Three deep chimes—the sound rolling across the entire academy grounds like thunder across mountains. Kage pushed himself upright in bed, carefully testing weight on his bandaged legs. Still hurt. Still weak. But functional enough.

He could hear the distant roar of students flooding toward the towers—excitement, anxiety, desperate hope all blending into a single wall of sound.

[The Wolf of the North finds this amusing. He says you're about to make many enemies and very few friends.]

[The Witch of Mirror is watching with interest. She suggests you memorize every face that looks at you with hatred today. Those will be important later.]

[The Heretic Inquisitor of Eternal Truth is laughing. He says the fun is just beginning.]

Kage rose slowly, wincing as weight settled on his legs. He'd changed into fresh academy-issued grays—simple cloth that marked him as newly accepted but not yet assigned a colored robe. The fabric felt rough against his skin, smelling of soap and starch.

He made his way to the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Ayesha materialized from around a corner, arms crossed.

"To see the results."

"You can barely walk."

"Then I'll limp." Kage met her gaze without flinching. "I didn't survive a month and a week in here just to miss my own posting."

Something flickered across her face—respect, maybe. Or resignation. She exhaled through her nose.

"Fine. But take this." She handed him a wooden cane, simple and unadorned. "And if you collapse on the way, don't expect me to carry you back."

***

The walk to Dragon Tower—the closest of the Seven—took longer than it should have. Every step sent dull pain radiating up his legs like Death Qi circulating through cracked meridians, but Kage gritted his teeth and pressed forward. The cane helped, though it also branded him as injured, vulnerable.

'Perfect,' he thought darkly. 'Nothing announces 'easy target' like a boy with a cane.'

By the time he reached the Tower's base, a massive crowd had already gathered. Hundreds of newly accepted students pressed against barriers erected by Jade Wardens, all craning their necks to read the enormous jade tablets that had materialized on each tower's face.

Names glowed in silver script, organized in descending order:

CELESTIAL CLASS

At the very top, forty names. Kage's eyes scanned the list, searching—

There.

Kage Ardyn Ironstorm - CELESTIAL CLASS - Dragon Tower, Floor 18

His name sat at first position. People glanced at it with awe, eyes widening, murmurs rippling through the crowd like wind through tall grass.

"Ironstorm? The Great Ironstorm?"

"Damn—of course! The great clan!"

Around him, students were reacting to their own postings. Some cheered. Some wept. Some stood frozen in shock, unable to process their placement.

Kage caught fragments of conversation:

"...Celestial Class! I made it! I actually made it!"

"Noble's not bad, better than I hoped—"

"Provisional? How did I end up in Provisional after everything I—"

"Who's this Kage? Never heard that name during the examination—"

"I thought Ironstorm Hai Shen and Bai Chen were the last Ironstorms."

"A bastard perhaps!"

"...heard he killed the Impure. Single-handedly—"

"...heard he robbed eight examinees and left them with nothing—"

Kage listened to the whispers, feeling the weight of eyes beginning to turn toward him. Not many recognized him yet—he'd kept a low profile during the examination, deliberately avoiding attention until necessary.

But someone quickly did.

"You."

The voice cut through the crowd like a blade through silk. Cold. Controlled. Furious.

Kage turned slowly, leaning on his cane.

The platinum blonde girl stood ten feet away, flanked by three others. There was no way Kage wouldn't recognize her.

Yuki looked different now—cleaned up, wearing fresh academy grays, her hair bound in an elegant braid. But her eyes held the same sharp intelligence he'd noted that day. And now they held something else too.

She stepped forward, a subtle and dangerous smile playing at her lips.

"We meet again."

Kage met her gaze without flinching. "We do."

She folded her arms over her chest.

"I heard about what happened... to Shen and Marcus... it was unfortunate. But I also heard it was your brothers who caused it."

A dark frown settled over Kage's face.

"Your point?"

Yuki smirked, shaking her head.

"Nothing. One can just never know how far these great clans will go with their schemes. Congratulations on acing the examination, though."

She walked past Kage, her three new subordinates trailing behind her like obedient threads in a Weaver's pattern.

She stopped barely two steps later and asked quietly, "What's your name?"

"Kage."

"Kage." She repeated it like she was memorizing the shape of it, the weight, committing it to memory the way a Purist would memorize a Form. "I'm Yuki Wintermere. Noble House from the Western continent. Remember that name."

"Why?"

Her smile turned cold as winter iron.

"Because before we graduate, I'm going to surpass you. I'm going to prove that your methods—theft, ruthlessness—are inferior to cooperation. To harmony. To actually working with people instead of exploiting them."

Kage tilted his head, genuinely curious.

"And then what? We shake hands and agree to disagree?"

"No." Yuki's voice dropped to something dangerous. "Then I take from you what you took from us. Not scrolls. Not tokens. But the satisfaction of standing higher."

She turned to her companions.

"Let's go. We have orientation in an hour. No point wasting time on him now."

Kage watched them go, then turned back to the tablet.

His name glowed in silver among the Celestial Class. The first position out of forty.

'Not bad,' he thought. 'But…'

His eyes tracked down the rest of the Celestial Class roster.

1. Kage Ardyn Ironstorm - CELESTIAL CLASS - Dragon Tower, Floor 18

2. Aurelius von Goldenheart - CELESTIAL CLASS - Lion Tower, Floor 20

3. Hana Mizuki - CELESTIAL CLASS - Serpent Tower, Floor 20

4. Vanadis Skybreaker - CELESTIAL CLASS - Dragon Tower, Floor 20

5. Lirien Moonblossom - CELESTIAL CLASS - Crane Tower, Floor 20

6. Dmitri - CELESTIAL CLASS - Tiger Tower, Floor 20

7. Talia Emberforge - CELESTIAL CLASS - Phoenix Tower, Floor 20

8. Mikail Yamakawa - CELESTIAL CLASS - Dragon Tower, Floor 20

9. Lian Feng - CELESTIAL CLASS - Dragon Tower, Floor 20

10. Haru Brightwind – CELESTIAL CLASS - Phoenix Tower, Floor 20.

Interesting. Everybody got Floor 20—the highest floor, presumably the best accommodations. He got Floor 18.

Kage chuckled at the hidden message.

'High enough to acknowledge my performance. Low enough to remind me I'm not untouchable.'

[The Heretic Inquisitor of Eternal Truth approves of your analysis. She says the academy is already playing games with you. The question is whether you're clever enough to play back.]

Kage's smile lingered, then he began the slow, painful walk back toward the infirmary. He'd need to rest before orientation. His legs were screaming—meridians burning as though he'd forced too much unrefined Qi through damaged channels—and the day was far from over.

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