Chiba and Yolden scribbled away, their pens scratching across the pages. They didnāt fully understand why Raze had asked them to do this little exercise, but everything else heād said that day had made sense, so they trusted him enough to go along with it.
A few minutes later, they were done. Both pushed their sheets forward proudly, as if submitting a final exam they knew theyād aced.
Raze picked up the first sheet labeled
Grand Magus
.
"I was sitting right in front of you both, so I know you didnāt copy off each other," he said, scanning the pages. "Still... your answers are almost identical."
He read aloud, "Honorable. Strong. Trustworthy. A symbol. Leadership. Guidance. Protector."
He nodded, then picked up the second set of papers, this one about the Dark Guild.
"And again, nearly word-for-word the same: Untrustworthy. Evil. Lawbreakers. Villains. Backstabbers. Crazy. Dangerous."
The two girls raised their eyebrows, glancing at each other with a slight shrug.
"Well... arenāt those things true?" Chiba asked.
"Based on what?" Raze asked, his tone calm, but heavy. "Have either of you
personally
experienced anything to prove those assumptions? Even if not directly, do you
know
anyone who has?"
They stayed quiet.
Raze leaned forward, eyes sharp now.
"Letās take a step back. The Central Mage Academy, favored by the Grand Magus, looks down on other academies. Isnāt that why both of
you
have to work twice as hard to prove yourselves?"
The girls said nothing, but the silence was loud.
"Anyway," Raze continued, waving a hand dismissively, "thatās just context. The point is this, sometimes we see what we want to see. Like when Moze jumped the gun in Panlaās lesson. He didnāt pause. Didnāt try to understand the full picture."
He stood now, holding both sets of papers in each hand.
"If you break these groups down into individual actions, what has the
Dark Guild
actually done thatās so unforgivable? Why is learning
Dark Magic
considered a crime before anything has even happened?"
The words landed heavily.
"I told you already, my favor isnāt much. Just remember me. Remember
who
I am, and
what
I said."
With that, Raze turned and walked away, leaving behind two of the top female students in the academy sitting in stunned silence.
"...What was
that
about?" Yolden asked after a long beat.
"Iām not sure," Chiba said slowly. "But... didnāt it almost sound like he was a Dark Guild sympathizer? Iāve seen people talk like that online. People who think the Dark Guild isnāt evil, and that the Grand Magus is the real villain."
"Raze?" Yolden scoffed. "No way. All those sympathizers are just bitter losers whoāve gotten nowhere in life. Thatās why they latch onto rebellion. But Raze? Heās practically perfect. Talented, smart, heās got everything."
"Maybe his mind just works differently," she added, her voice softening. "Maybe heās just... trying to see things from a wider perspective. And if thatās the case... maybe heās right."
Chiba grinned, nudging her friend. "Okay, hear me out, Iāve got a wild theory."
Yolden groaned. "Oh boy."
"His name is Raze, right? Wasnāt
Raze
also the name of a Nine-Star Mage from history? The one they called the Dark Magus? What if heās been
reincarnated
, and now heās in the body of a student?"
Yolden smacked Chiba lightly on the arm. "Donāt be ridiculous!
Raze
is a common name. Besides, if the Dark Magus really
was
back, why would he come here? Why would he sit down with
us
, tutor
us
for hours like some normal student?"
Chiba just grinned wider. "Maybe that
was
the answer. Maybe he
wants
us to question what we think we know."
As Raze walked alone down the hall, he wasnāt thinking about Chiba or Yolden anymore.
He didnāt need them to understand everything right away. He just needed them to
start
questioning. The world had blindly followed a narrative for far too long. The Dark Guild had done what it could to reshape peopleās thinking, but it clearly wasnāt enough.
Hatred for Dark Magic still ran deep. The Grand Magus still sat high on a pedestal.
Changing that perspective... wonāt be easy.
Still, Raze had other things on his mind.
Time magic.
He had searched every inch of the academyās library and found nothing beyond what he already knew. No advanced theories. No historic applications. Nothing.
Just as I thought,
Raze sighed internally.
If I want to learn anything real about time magic, Iāll have to get into the Central Academy. Itās not just about removing Ibrain anymore, we need to take everything theyāre hiding there.
Eventually, Raze returned to his dorm room. He was surprised to find everyone already inside. Apparently, heād stayed out longer than the rest.
"Well, look at that," he said with a smirk. "All in one piece. No one expelled yet. Thatās a good sign."
The group laughed, and one by one, they updated Raze on their day, what theyād experienced, who theyād met, and what kind of chaos theyād survived.
Hearing about Safaās classroom run-in, and Dameās awkward fan encounter, actually made Raze laugh. A genuine one.
This time in Alterian... it was different. Better. He was starting to believe that bringing these people with him had been the right call. At least so far.
"Hey," Beatrix asked, curious, "do you think itās possible to combine the power of the Staff with the Artifact?"
"That shouldnāt be a problem," Raze answered confidently. "That way itāll look like regular earth magic. The Artifact will still use your Qi to power it, but it might even make the result a little stronger."
He stood up and stretched.
"Iāll start working on it tonight. But before that, I want all of you to do something for me."
The group leaned in slightly, sensing a shift in tone.
"The next time you meet someone, anyone, say this phrase:
Fear the unseen.
"
He paused, making sure they heard every word.
"If they respond with
For we are always near,
then report back to me immediately."
****
****
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