The courtyard outside the arena buzzed with shouts and tension.
Candidates lined the steps — some comparing weapons, others quietly testing aura in silent contests.
Then the shouting sharpened.
Two rookies faced off, their pressure colliding so violently the stone tiles cracked beneath them.
The crowd leaned forward as both launched.
The impact sent up a cloud of dust.
When the haze cleared, both rookies were on the ground — one groaning with his arm twisted behind his back, the other staring at a broken blade.
Standing between them was a figure.
Scarf loose at his neck.
Eyes faintly glowing with an intensity most couldn't hold.
The crowd went quiet.
Then the whispers started.
"Who is that?"
"I didn't even see him move."
Someone said it low, like they weren't sure they should.
"That's Rin Kairo."
A breath.
"The Black Clan."
Gasps moved through the crowd like a stone dropped in still water.
The cursed bloodline.
A name that carried weight before the person wearing it even spoke.
Kai's chest tightened.
His gaze locked onto Rin the moment Rin's eyes moved to him.
The noise and heat fell back.
Rin's aura brushed against Kai's — not aggressive, not gentle — reading the strange depth beneath Kai's calm.
The kind of thing only Golds and above were said to notice.
The recognition was brief.
Rin looked away.
Aria stepped forward before the silence could settle into something worse.
"What's with you two? Save it for the trial."
Sound crashed back in.
Rookies pointed and whispered as Rin turned into the crowd.
Kai blinked, said nothing.
The acknowledgment hung between them, unspoken.
Proctors' horns sounded.
Trial by Mind was about to begin.
Rookies entered the arena chamber, nerves crackling like static.
Desks in perfect rows awaited, each with parchment, brush, and a vial of ink.
Armor-clad Seeker guards lined the walls, hands on hilts, eyes sharp enough to catch lies before they landed.
"Trial by Mind," the proctor announced.
"One hour. Any cheating, and you're expelled."
Silence.
Then the rustling of parchment as everyone sat down.
Kai sank into his seat and stared.
The first question appeared:
List the Seven Spokes of Muti and define their resonance laws.
He glanced at the ceiling, lips moving.
"Seven... uh... Martial, Elemental... Spiritus? Or Spiritual? What even is Abyssal?"
His brush hovered uselessly.
Aria was already writing, strokes precise.
She didn't look up.
Kai groaned into his sleeve.
"I'm dead."
Across the room, a boy with Psychic Muti closed his eyes, skimming thoughts from a neighbor's page.
A girl flicked her hair, sending a ripple of Sound Muti — whispers carrying answers down the row.
Another candidate folded motes with Spiritus Muti, flickering tiny light-shapes as coded signals.
A guard's head jerked up.
Cheating vanished.
Faces went blank.
Brushes moved.
Kai tapped his brush against his forehead, muttering.
"Pulse Vein... Soul Channel... Manifest Drift... God Pulse... Still Flow... That's five. Five's good, right?"
He scribbled, but his handwriting fell apart halfway through the second line.
Two rows over, a Spatial user slid a nearly invisible mirror sliver to copy a neighbor's sheet.
A guard's boot cracked the floor.
The mirror winked out.
Her brush scribbled in fake panic.
Sweat beaded on Kai's brow.
Ink ran down the page.
"Why didn't Darius teach me this part?" he whispered.
He raised a timid hand.
"Uh... can I get another paper? This one looks like I sneezed in Untra."
Snickers moved through the room.
Aria covered a smile with her hand and kept writing.
The hall was stone-still when guards collected papers.
Minutes dragged.
The proctor returned with a long scroll and unrolled it — parchment snapping like thunder.
"Those who failed the Trial by Mind will leave now."
Names scrolled out.
Shoulders sagged.
Chairs scraped.
Dozens filed out — some cursing, others keeping their heads down.
The air grew lighter.
And sharper.
Those remaining knew they'd crossed the first threshold.
Kai gripped his desk, holding his breath until the last name was called.
Not his.
Relief hit so hard he almost laughed.
He hid it with a hand to his neck.
Still in.
When the doors closed, the proctor lifted the scroll again.
"Now we form your squads. Four to a team. These are the allies you'll fight beside in the Trial by Combat."
The room held its breath.
"Squad One: Odin North. Leo Maximillian. Allelujah Mason. Sofia Roses."
"Squad Two: Zhen Murai. Solene Ivaris. Omar Hakim. Mei-Lan of the Crimson Fan."
Four figures rose — pride, poise, whispers following them up.
"Squad Four: Urahara Senko. Si Lung. Sidney Lo. James Vonn."
Gasps.
A brutal lineup.
Rivals were already sizing each other up.
The proctor's gaze moved down the scroll.
"Squad Three: Rin Kairo."
The room tensed.
Rin rose — scarf draped, presence cutting clean through the murmurs.
"Your teammates... Kai Xander."
Kai blinked.
"Me?"
He stood under a hundred stares.
His eyes brushed Rin's — no words, just pressure — then Rin looked away.
"Lila Butters."
She nearly tripped jumping up.
"That's me! Totally saw that coming."
She yanked her bag free, grinning into the silence.
"Okay, maybe not."
Snickers slipped through the tension.
"And finally... Aria Flamehart."
She rose smoothly, confidence in every step.
Lightning flickered faintly at her knuckles, scarf trailing.
Passing Kai, her glance slid sideways just enough to straighten him.
The scroll rolled shut.
"Tomorrow begins your Trial by Combat. Rest well — your squad may be the only reason you leave alive."
Murmurs surged.
Candidates moved toward their new allies — some laughing, others already sharpening rivalries.
Kai stood with his team.
Rin — silent, unreadable.
Lila — practically bouncing.
Aria — calm, keen eyes already measuring the room.
One team among many.