Chapter 142: Presence of Shadow

[Author’s Note:

A very special Thank You to "Dragonfly_10" for the Castle.]

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Elara:

When I looked toward her, Aria was glaring at me through tear-streaked cheeks, her eyes filled with such cold hatred that I could almost feel it from across the space between us.

She looked humiliated. Truly humiliated. And for one brief moment, I considered whether I had gone too far. The illusion had been cruel. There was no denying that. I had deliberately taken something she feared and turned it into a nightmare in front of an entire classroom. But then I remembered what she had done to me.

She had deliberately created an illusion of Reign humiliating and taunting me because she thought I would be afraid of him. She had wanted an audience. She had wanted to make me feel powerless. And she was more than ready to enjoy every second of it.

I had simply given her a taste of her own medicine.

I tilted my head and looked at her calmly. "Why are you looking at me like I committed some terrible crime?" I asked, my voice carrying clearly through the silence.

Aria’s expression tightened, but I didn’t look away. "You tried to terrify me by using humiliation. You assumed I was afraid of Reign and his so-called lessons, and you thought putting me through that in front of everyone would break me. I only did the same thing to you." I let the words settle between us before adding quietly, "The difference is that I actually succeeded."

And I didn’t feel guilty.

Perhaps that was another thing I had learned since arriving at Moonveil Academy. When you are the nail, nobody thinks twice about swinging the hammer at you. They don’t stop to wonder whether you can handle it. They don’t soften the blow because you are new, because you are scared, because you are still learning, or because you have already been hurt enough. So when it was finally my turn to hold the hammer, I decided I wasn’t going to swing it halfway.

If someone came for me, I would hit back. And I would hit hard.

The rest of the practical continued for nearly another hour, but thankfully, nobody else decided to turn their round into the kind of spectacle Aria and I had created. Most students seemed perfectly content with the safer choices.

Insects crawled across desks, ghosts appeared from dark corners, terrifying beasts lunged at unsuspecting opponents, and one particularly unfortunate student was forced to watch an illusion of herself failing every single one of her exams.

There were screams, curses, nervous laughter, and more than a few students breaking their opponents’ illusions before they could fully form. By the end of the hour, two more students had managed to earn the full thirty credit points, while several others had performed badly enough that they hadn’t even reached the fifteen-point passing requirement. For them, their only hope now was the collection of credits they had accumulated throughout the term.

I couldn’t help feeling relieved that I wasn’t one of them. Thirty points might not erase all the damage from losing my previous credits, but at least I had finally begun rebuilding my score.

When the class finally ended, Violet came over before gathering her things. She bumped her shoulder lightly against mine and grinned, still looking far too pleased with what had happened earlier. "That was incredible," she whispered, her eyes sparkling with pride as she told me she had genuinely thought Aria would manage to trap me for a moment.

I laughed softly and admitted that I had been surprised myself by how quickly my counterattack had worked. She squeezed my arm before leaving with the rest of her classmates for their next class.

I was about to follow my classmates out when Professor Stroll called my name. "Miss Argentis, stay behind for a moment."

I glanced around, but she didn’t explain anything else. One by one, the remaining students filed out until the classroom was empty, and then Professor Stroll simply gathered her notes and told me to follow her.

Ten minutes later, I was standing inside Professor Elowen’s office, wondering why my life had apparently developed a habit of becoming increasingly complicated every time I thought I had finally understood something.

Professor Elowen stood behind her desk while Professor Stroll remained nearby, and both women were staring at me with expressions that made me immediately suspicious. Then Professor Elowen finally said, "Miss Argentis, we have detected traces of another elemental signature in your magic. Shadow."

I blinked. For several seconds, I simply stared at her. Shadow? I had Ice. I knew I had Wind because Lorien had confirmed it. But shadow? That was new.

Judging by the way Professor Stroll and Professor Elowen exchanged a look, I wasn’t sure who was more shocked - me, who had apparently developed a third elemental affinity without noticing, or the two professors who had just discovered it.

Professor Stroll explained that she had noticed something unusual during my practical. My illusions hadn’t simply carried the normal structure of illusion magic. There had been traces of something darker woven through them, particularly when I had shattered Aria’s illusion and immediately created my own. She hadn’t been certain enough to announce anything in the classroom, which was why she had brought me directly to Professor Elowen.

The explanation made sense, but my mind immediately wandered somewhere else. Kairo had Shadow magic too, and then last night... My cheeks warmed despite myself.

Could his magic somehow have transferred to me? Could some part of his Shadow element have somehow latched onto my magic because of what we had done? I had absolutely no idea whether that was even possible, but I wasn’t about to mention it to two professors.

"So you are sure?" I asked carefully, trying to sound far more composed than I felt. "I mean... are you completely certain I have Shadow magic? Couldn’t it just be some kind of... I don’t know... mistake?"

Professor Elowen didn’t immediately answer, which only made me more nervous. Instead, she folded her hands over the desk and explained that what they had detected was a trace, not enough evidence to make an official confirmation.

"We need a proper elemental assessment," she finally said. "I will speak with Vice Headmistress Noctis and arrange one for you."

Professor Stroll then explained that every student normally underwent an elemental assessment during their entrance examination. The assessment determined which elements were present in their magical core and helped the academy decide how their education should be structured.

I hadn’t undergone anything comparable because my magic had been completely sealed when I arrived. There had been no way to accurately determine what elements I possessed when I couldn’t summon magic at all. Now, however, everything had changed. I had already unlocked Ice. Lorien had confirmed the presence of Wind. And now there were signs of Shadow as well.

"Your seal has loosened considerably since you arrived," Professor Elowen added, her expression thoughtful. "That makes this the ideal time to determine exactly what is beneath it."

I swallowed.

Three elements already. And suddenly, I had a strange feeling that the assessment might reveal something neither of us was prepared for.