"Destiny does not wait for the hesitant.

In a world that values power, the powerless must carve their own path—or be left behind."

Another morning. Another day.

Birds chirped outside Ryu’s window as he finished packing his bag. He gulped down a glass of warm milk, took a quick bite of toast, and stepped out the door. He had a bit of time, so he figured he’d check on Aiden before school.

The streets were quiet as he pedaled through the neighborhood. The morning air was cool, the sky pale blue. He glanced back at his house once—tall, quiet, and a little too big for someone living alone.

When he arrived at Aiden’s room, the windows beside the door were all shut. As usual.

Ryu sighed, He knocked once. No answer. Knocked again—still nothing. He gave the door three quick knocks and waited.

“Tch.”

He pulled out his phone and dialed. After a few rings and no answer, he hung up, frustrated.

“Agh, guess I’ll have to do this the hard way—”

Just then, the door creaked open.

Aiden stood there, half-awake, hair messy, shirt wrinkled. But he was up.

A brief silence hung before Ryu nearly shouted, “GAH! Am I dreaming?! You—you—up this early?! For school?!”

Aiden winced and rubbed his temple. “Too loud... It’s too early for this.”

Ryu folded his arms. “Well, you just shocked me. You actually listened to me for once.”

Aiden gave a lazy shrug. “Something like that.”

“Whatever. We’re late. Move it.”

Aiden nodded, grabbed his bag, and followed Ryu down the stairs.

Class went on as normal until Mr. Theodore Brookshade, their homeroom teacher, entered. As always, his presence made the room fall silent.

“Today,” he said, “all Year 2 students will have a physical exam. After lunch, report to the grounds behind Block A. Come prepared.”

He turned and walked right back out.

The classroom buzzed to life.

“Finally, no lectures!” someone laughed.

“Ugh... but a physical exam? I barely passed last time,” another groaned.

Ryu stared at the board, unimpressed. “Great,” he muttered under his breath.

In the cafeteria, noise filled every corner—shouts, footsteps, chairs scraping.

Ryu sat across from Aiden, staring at his food but not eating it. His thoughts were somewhere else.

Aiden, as usual, was spacing out. He was just... staring at a cream bun like it held the secrets of the universe.

Ryu rolled his eyes and grabbed a cold juice can, pressing it to Aiden’s cheek.

Aiden flinched. “What are you doing?”

“You looked dead.”

“Still feel dead,” Aiden mumbled, slipping back into his zone.

Ryu shook his head. “Of course. I should’ve known.”

Just as he was about to dig into his food, Ryu noticed something by the entrance.

A group of Year--2 guys from other section had cornered a first-year girl. One tall guy stood way too close, grinning like an idiot, while the others stood behind him.

Ryu narrowed his eyes.

The girl didn’t look scared—just quiet. Her arms were crossed, her face unreadable.

But Ryu didn’t stop to think. His legs moved on their own.

He got up and walked straight toward them.

“Oi,” he called, loud enough to turn heads. “What the hell are you doing?”

The wierdly tall guy turned, not looking threatened at all. “Relax, kid. We’re just having a conversation.”

Ryu ignored him and looked at the girl. “You okay?”

She gave him a strange look, then slipped past the group without saying a word.

Ryu paused. Wait, she wasn’t trapped?

“Well, see?” the guy said. “No problem. But now we’ve got one lil heroic brat to deal with.”

Ryu sighed and crossed his arms. “Look, I’m not here to fight. Just stop acting like jerks and go eat your lunch.”

The guy’s smirk faded a little. “What’d you say?”

“I said—”

The punch came fast.

Ryu stepped back just in time, and the cafeteria went silent as chairs screeched and trays nearly flipped.

“NO fighting inside!” the cafeteria lady yelled from behind the counter.

They stared each other down.

Ryu’s blood boiled.

Fine. Outside, then.

The fight didn’t last long.

Ryu was fast and could throw a punch, but the guy was bigger and hit harder. A few blows later, Ryu was on the ground, panting, his cheek bruised.

The guy scoffed and cracked his knuckles. “Tch. Waste of time. You don’t even know the basics.”

Ryu didn’t reply. He just sat up and grinned through the pain.

Then a shadow blocked the sun. Aiden stood there, still holding his cream bun, as if nothing had happened.

He reached out and held another bun toward Ryu.

“Mmm. You want one?”

Ryu twitched. “You... watched the whole thing?!”

Aiden took a bite. “Looked like you had it covered.”

“I GOT MY ASS HANDED TO ME!”

Aiden shrugged, munching slowly. “You’re not dead.”

That was it.

Ryu snatched the bun and took an angry bite. “This is robbery.”

“Should’ve moved faster, also I am not into the spontaneous self--assumed acts of heroism!” Aiden said.

“Ow! But, you could’ve used magic! You could’ve stopped him!”

“Too much effort.” Aiden shrugged.

Ryu groaned. “I swear... one day...”

Later that day, all the second-years gathered on the training field.

Energy buzzed through the crowd. There were even a few people watching from the staff tower, which was unusual.

Ryu was doing stretches. Aiden, of course, was standing in the back, yawning like he was about to nap.

The tests began—sprints, jumps, endurance drills. Everyone pushed themselves. Ryu did his best to keep up. His lungs burned, and sweat stung his eyes, but he didn’t stop.

Meanwhile, Aiden stood there, looking like he couldn’t care less.

Until he saw someone.

No one else noticed, but something changed in him.

Suddenly, Aiden took off, the race he was thinking he would skip if he just disappear!

One blink, and he was gone—sprinting at full speed, leaping higher than anyone had, moving so fast even the instructors were stunned. Every record got shattered one after another.

Even Ryu, who had been watching mid-exam, stood with his mouth open. “What the hell…”

Aiden crossed the last checkpoint and stopped. Just stood there.

Not tired. Not smiling. Just... frozen.

Ryu ran over. “Aido? Aidooo—AIDOOO!”

Nothing.

Ryu waved a hand in front of his face. No reaction.

He clapped loudly near his ear.

Aiden flinched and blinked. “Ugh... noisy.”

Ryu let out a short laugh. “That was amazing! You totally went off.”

Aiden didn’t respond. His eyes were still scanning the crowd. But then the instructor blew the whistle.

“Everyone back to class!”

Back in the classroom, the air was buzzing with whispers.

“Hey, did you hear the news? There might be a war soon.”

“Yeah, between the Southern Empire and North-Eastern Federation, right?”

“I heard the taxes and travel bans are already getting worse.”

Before anyone could say more, Mr. Brookshade entered and the class fell quiet.

“Graduation exams are coming,” he said. “And after that, comes the biggest decision of your lives.”

The tension in the room thickened.

“After exams,” he continued, “a practical assessment will determine your next path. Those with strong magic will be sent to one of the nine elite academies—either for combat, research, or public service. Those without it will have to prove themselves through grades and physical performance to qualify for the Army Academy. You can fit into the normal service works in the public sector if you wish to, but most of the time the only choice for those people is to join military.”

Some students looked excited. Others… not so much.

Ryu clenched his fists under his desk.

He’d wanted to stand beside mages his whole life. But no matter how much he trained or waited… nothing ever showed up. No affinity. No power. Just disappointment.

He remembered the whispers growing up:

  “No magic? Poor guy’s got no future.”

  “He’s from a mage family too, right? How embarrassing.”

But it wasn’t those voices that haunted him the most.

It was his father’s.

  “You’re a disgrace to our bloodline. I’ve given up on you. Don’t embarrass yourself any further.”

Ryu had heard those words once.

And never forgot them.

If he couldn’t be a mage soldier, then he’d earn his place in the army. That was his new goal. He trained every day for it. Even if he wasn’t the strongest. Even if he had to fight harder than everyone else just to keep up.

Only Aiden stuck with him through it all. And that… was a story for another time.

Then Brookshade said something unexpected.

“One more thing,” he said. “Before the assessment, you’ll have a reward.”

Everyone perked up.

“The school is organizing a five-day trip to the Royal Beczethone Ruins. A campsite, team activities, and one last adventure with your friends.”

The classroom broke into cheers.

Brookshade raised his hand.

“Enjoy it. Because once it’s over, your future begins.”

Ryu leaned back in his seat. The trip sounded fun, but he couldn’t stop thinking about what came next.

The assessment.

That was where everything would be decided.

He tightened his grip on his desk.

“I’ll make it,” he thought.

“I’ll become one of the best cadets.”

Chapter End