Saloni walked out of combat class, took a short rest, and after lunch she had her History class.
This hall was completely different.
Old wooden benches, big maps on the walls, and in some places faded paintings showing war scenes or portraits of great people.
The moment she stepped into the room, a warm old‑books smell greeted her.
Saloni sat down on a bench in one corner.
After a few moments, the door opened and an old man came in.
Thin body, greying hair, glasses, but a steady walk.
He wrote his name on the board – **Professor Devashish**.
"History," he said softly, "might feel boring to you.
But if you don't know which path you're walking on, your strength will end exactly where someone else's starts.
So today, we'll talk about the stories hidden behind power."
Some students hid their yawns, but most stayed quiet.
"In our world, three names are always remembered," the professor said.
"Three people who changed the world not just with their power, but with their choices."
He wrote three names on the board:
1. Aarav – The Silent Fang
2. Lady Veera – Fire Master
3. Arhan – Lightning Man
Saloni's eyes stopped on those three names.
"The first – Aarav, whom people called the Silent Fang," the professor began.
"He had no element at all.
Even then, he won so many battles alone that people used to say –
if he is standing on the battlefield, the front line will not break.
He spoke very little, but his fists and his kicks did all the talking."
Something moved deep inside Saloni.
Someone without an element could become a legend too…
"The second – Lady Veera, the Fire Master," he turned to the other side.
"She was the first woman ever seen using an element, and because of her, humans saw their first real ray of hope."
"The third name – Arhan, the Lightning Man," the professor continued.
"He was an element user who taught the world how to use elements in different ways and made many other contributions.
Because of the great Arhan, all the Academies were founded.
Today your rankings, your exams, your training – all of that comes from the system he created.
He believed,
'Raw strength creates fear, but trained strength creates order.'"
For the first time, many students in the class started listening a little seriously.
"These three had one thing in common," the professor said.
"They believed that what you choose to become is more important than how you were born.
Aarav turned his animal‑like instincts into a weapon.
Veera used the powers she learned in the right way.
And Arhan used his strength not to make rules for others, but to keep learning."
He looked around at the whole class.
"Many of you are proud of your element.
Many of you are ashamed of your background.
But history only keeps space for those
who rise above both and define themselves."
Saloni found herself unusually calm.
It felt like someone had turned on small lights in different corners inside her, but only one thought kept echoing in her mind –
*What will I become? Which side am I on?*
When class ended, her friends went back to laughing and joking.
Some were talking about Aarav, some were telling stories about Veera's beauty, some were guessing what Arhan's lightning techniques must have been like.
Saloni walked out slowly.
For the first time, her day was not only filled with bodyguard duty,
but also with learning something for herself.
Walking through the corridor, she looked at her own fist.
It was a little swollen from the morning practice and yesterday's fight.
But now it did not feel like a fist that rose only for someone else.
"From today," she said silently in her heart,
"these hands will not rise only to protect someone…
they will rise to prove myself too."
She had just drunk some water and stepped out of the hall when a loud bell rang through the whole building.
A girl behind her said,
"They've called everyone to the main hall again. Maybe they're going to explain that new power system."
Saloni stopped.
Yes, the Vice Principal had said the ranking was going to change… maybe today they would finally explain how.
Her tiredness hadn't fully gone yet, but curiosity turned her feet towards the main hall on its own.
The hall was already packed.
All the boys and girls were sitting on the floor, on the steps, or standing against the walls.
On the balcony above, a few teachers were also visible.
This time, it was not the Vice Principal on stage.
The Principal himself was standing there.
With him stood three other people –
a middle‑aged man in a white coat, who looked like some kind of scientist;
a strong guard‑type man with a strange black watch on his wrist;
and that same calm young man Saloni had seen at the gate.
The moment she saw him, Saloni's heart seemed to stop for a beat.
*He's here too…?*
The Principal raised his hand.
"Quiet, everyone, quiet."
The noise slowly died down.
"As the Vice Principal told you all earlier," he said,
"the academy's ranking system is going to change.
And not just our academy – the way power is measured across the entire Eastern Hemisphere is changing.
From today, all of you come under a new power system."
Soft whispers spread through the hall –
"A new power system?"
"Does that mean the same for all humans?"
The Principal looked with respect towards the man who looked like a scientist.
"This is Doctor Viren from the gene research team," he said. "He will explain what this new system is, and why it is necessary."
Doctor Viren stepped forward. His speaking style was simple, but every word was clear.
"Until some time ago," he said,
"we only knew this much – when a person learns an element, their body changes and they become stronger.
For example, if someone with an earth element learns to use it, they can attack with earth and form something like armour over their body, and so on."
He paused for a breath, then continued.
"But with recent research, we found out that when a person starts learning an element,
some of the genes inside them 'mutate' –
they change.
We call them *muted genes*, because earlier we didn't know this. We just saw that when an element user used their power, after some time they got tired and couldn't use it anymore, and we didn't understand why.
When we began to research this, we discovered gene mutation.
From this, we understood that the more genes get muted, the more a person can use an element."
For the first time, many students started listening with real interest.
Some whispered to each other,
"So elements aren't just magic, they're changes inside the body too?"
Doctor Viren nodded.
"From these mutated genes, we can find out how much potential a person has –
how powerful they can become,
or what level they are at right now.
That's why, globally, a new power system has been created,
which reads a person's muted genes and shows their level."
He raised his hand and pointed at the guard's wrist.
The guard lifted his black watch so everyone could see.
In the centre of the watch was a small screen, and on it, a blue number was glowing – **31**.
"This device," Doctor Viren said,
"will be given to all of you today.
When you wear it, it will scan your muted genes and show your level.
The higher the level, the greater the responsibility… and the greater the difficulties too."
Someone whispered softly,
"So now our strength will be measured not only by the teachers' eyes, but by a machine too…"
The Principal took over again.
"Listen carefully," he said.
"People from Level 1 to Level 10 stay in low‑level academies –
like our academy.
Our Principal is at Level 15,
and our two most senior guards are at Level 11.
All of you right now are somewhere between Level 1 and 9,
or maybe even below that, if your mutation hasn't started yet."
'Wah' and 'oh' sounds rose across the hall.
On everyone's face, fear and excitement were mixed together.
"In mid‑level academies," he went on,
"members with power from Level 11 to 30 are trained.
In high‑level and royal academies, people from Level 31 to 50 train.
And at the very top –
the Mahamandal Academy, the most powerful organisation on Earth –
they have members from Level 50 to 70."
He paused for a moment and looked over all their faces.
"Till today," his voice grew a little heavier,
"no human on this earth has ever gone beyond Level 70.
No one.
Everyone has reached only that ceiling… and stopped there."
Someone whispered to a friend with wide eyes,
"So there's nothing beyond 70?"
The other replied,
"Or maybe there *is* something there… just a place no one has ever reached."
In Saloni's mind, the stranger she had seen at the gate appeared again.
*What level is he at?*
The question did not rise like fear,
but like a strange, sharp curiosity.
What changes will this curiosity bring?
And what will happen next?
To know that… keep reading **What Defines Me?**