The Anomaly's Path

The transport gate hummed with low energy as the light dissolved around us. When the light faded, the cold night air of the academy city hit us instantly.

We stood on one of the secondary arrival platforms in the upper part of the academy city. In the distance, the black spires and walls of Aegis Academy rose high above us, its glowing defensive runes shining softly through the night mist.

The city around it was huge — with streets, mana lamps, and buildings built to survive an attack. Even at this late hour, the city was quiet and still.

"Take those masks off," I said, unbuckling my own and letting it slip into my Void Pocket. "We’re out of the underworld. We don’t have to wear them now."

Caster removed his mask with a long sigh, rubbing his ]nose. "Man, I thought I was going to suffocate in that thing."

Julia pulled hers off carefully, shaking out her fluffy pink hair, while Malva simply removed hers with a quiet, efficient motion.

I looked down at Julian.

He was standing half a step behind me, shivering in the cool breeze. Before we got to the platform, I had pulled a clean shirt from my Void Pocket and tossed it to him. I always kept spare clothes in my storage, so it was all I had.

On his small, thin body, the shirt was way too big — the sleeves hung past his hands, and the hem went down past his knees like a dress. It looked ridiculous, but it was still better than the dirty, bloody rags he had been wearing.

"Stop staring," the brat muttered, pulling the oversized collar higher around his neck and glaring at me.

"I’m not staring," I replied casually. "I’m just admiring my own fashion taste."

He clicked his tongue and turned his head away, though his small hands kept a tight grip on the fabric.

We walked toward the main security gate leading into the inner area. Usually, getting in wasn’t a problem. Caster, Julia, Malva, and I were all registered students. I was the Primus, so the guards wouldn’t even ask me questions before waving us through after checking our IDs.

The problem was Julian.

The academy barrier was strict. Anyone without a registered mana signature, a student pass, or an official visitor permit would set off the alarms right away. The gates would open to the public tomorrow for the festival, but tonight the security was still tight.

We stopped near some stone pillars just outside the guard station to wait.

"Boss, why are we standing around?" Caster asked, leaning against a pillar and stretching his arms. "Are we waiting for someone?"

Before I could answer, the sound of quiet, measured footsteps echoed down the walkway.

A tall figure emerged from the shadows. She wore a dark jacket over her shoulders, a black cap pulled low over her eyes, and a simple black top and shorts. Even with the jacket on, her athletic build and sharp presence made her stand out.

Seris.

"Lady Seris," I said, stepping forward with a subtle nod. "Thanks for coming out at this hour."

"It’s not a problem," Seris replied quietly, giving me a slight nod.

Her crimson eyes swept over Caster, Julia, and Malva. She acknowledged each of them with a brief, nod before her gaze slid down to the small boy standing behind me in the oversized shirt. She stared at him for a quiet second, her eyebrows lifting slightly.

"Is this the boy you mentioned?"

"Yeah," I nodded, stepping aside slightly so she could see him better. "This is Julian."

Seris looked at him for another moment. Then, without a word, she stepped closer, reached out a hand, and tried to pat his head.

Caster’s eyes went wide. "Wait! Don’t touch him, he’ll—"

Caster cut his own voice off, his jaw dropping open.

Julian didn’t slap her hand away. He didn’t yell. He didn’t even flinch. He just stood there, frozen solid, his silver eyes wide as he looked up at Seris’s face. A deep, bright crimson flush spread from his cheeks all the way to his ears.

"...Are you a goddess?" Julian muttered under his breath, his voice barely a whisper.

Seris blinked once, her hand still resting lightly on his hair. A tiny, almost unnoticeable chuckle escaped her lips. "...No. I’m just a student."

She then turned her head slightly toward Caster. "Were you saying something?"

Caster stood there, mouth agape, looking like he’d just been hit in the chest with a hammer. "I... I..."

He clutched his chest with a wounded expression, stumbling back a step. "He slapped my hand away! I was just being friendly! Why does she get a free pass?!"

Julia patted Caster’s back with a quiet, pitying sigh. "There, there. It’s okay, Caster. It’s just the double standard of life."

I stood beside them, staring at the brat with narrowed eyes. Outside, I kept my face blank, but internally, my mind was screaming.

What the hell was that?

Where was all that ’Don’t touch me’ energy from five minutes ago? Why didn’t he bite her hand off?! I’m handsome too! In fact, I’m objectively better looking than almost every guy in this academy! Is it just because she’s a pretty girl?! You little hypocritical pervert brat... I should have left you in that basement.

Seeing him stand there blushing like a idiot under Seris’s hand made a sudden wave of annoyance rise in my chest.

Seris gave Julian’s head one more soft pat.

I stepped forward, reached out, and grabbed Julian by the back of his oversized collar, lifting him clean off his feet like an unwanted kitten.

"Hey! Let go of me! What the hell are you doing, you bastard?!" Julian yelled, swinging his legs in the air as he swung from my grip. "Put me down!"

"Now, now," I said, a pitch-perfect, terrifying smile spreading across my face as I looked down at him. "Didn’t you say earlier that you hate it when people touch you without permission? I’m just saving you from the discomfort."

Julian froze. He looked at my smile, felt the freezing chill running down his spine, and swallowed hard.

"A-Ah..." Julian stammered, his eyes darting back and forth. "Did... did I say that? Haha... bad memory... I guess... maybe I don’t mind as much..."

My smile widened by a fraction. "Is that so?"

"Y-Yes! I mean no! I mean—put me down!"

I dropped him back onto his feet. He stumbled, quickly smoothing down his oversized shirt and shuffling a safe distance away from me, shooting me a terrified glare.

I turned back to Seris, clearing my throat. "Lady Seris, if you would please guide us through the station?"

Seris looked between me, the brat, and my overly polite tone. A look of quiet confusion passed through her eyes, but she didn’t question it. She simply turned and gestured for us to follow. "This way."

_

With a Student Council officer leading the group, getting through security was easy.

Seris pulled out a temporary visitor badge from her jacket, scanned her mana link watch, and registered Julian under her name. The guards barely looked at us before the gates slid open, letting us into the academy city.

Once we crossed into the main residential street, I stopped near a quiet plaza and turned to my team. I reached into my Void Pocket and pulled out a spatial ring, tapping it against my palm before turning to Julia, Malva, and Caster.

"Before we split up for the night, you should take your things," I said.

I drew three items from the spatial ring. First, I handed Julia a beautiful staff.

"The staff boosts mana recovery by thirty percent," I explained to Julia, who was staring at the weapon with wide eyes. "You drain your pool rapidly during logistics and research calculations. Use this, it will help you and later we’ll buy a new one."

Julia held the staff, her fingers tracing the delicate runes. "Leo... this is incredible . Thank you."

Next, I turned to Malva and handed her the sword art scroll.

"This is a Grandmaster-rank Sword Art. It’s not the highest rank, but its mana-flow matches your heavy style perfectly. Use it to refine your form. Don’t force yourself to master it too fast — it takes time. In the future, we’ll get you a better one, but this one is good for your current rank. If you need help, I will help you."

Malva took the scroll and looked at it. She nodded at me. "...Thank you."

Finally, I tossed a heavy, enchanted dwarven hammer to Caster. He caught it with both hands, his eyes instantly lighting up like a kid on Christmas morning as he inspected the dwarven forge-marks. "Holy shit... the balance on this thing!"

I took a breath and looked at all three of them. "Tomorrow, the city festival begins. I want you three to take the day off, enjoy yourselves, and rest. You’ve earned it."

I paused, letting my gaze settle on each of them.

"Once the festival ends, things get serious. I’m going to personally oversee your training. You’re all strong, but if you’re going to stand beside me — not behind me, but you need to grow much stronger. We’ll go on missions in the future, and I need every one of you at your best."

Julia smiled softly, Malva nodded with silent determination, and Caster grinned, resting the hammer over his shoulder.

"Understood, Boss," Caster said. "We’ll see you at the festival tomorrow."

"Go on then," I waved a hand. "I’ll take the brat to a hotel nearby so he can sleep."

The three of them nodded slightly and turned, heading down the street toward the student residential district. Now, only three of us remained in the quiet plaza: me, Seris, and Julian.

I stood there for a moment, watching the streetlamps flicker in the breeze, before turning my eyes toward Seris. A faint sigh escaped my lips.

I owe her again, I thought.

Ever since the Gate Tournament — ever since the moment she ran her blade through my chest to stop my Soul Flame from going wild, she kept popping up in my life.

I owed her my survival, and even though I had asked her out to dinner on the fourth day of the festival to repay that debt, I kept piling on more favors. And every time I asked, no matter how weird or sudden the request was, she just quietly showed up and helped.

"Seris..." I began, rubbing the back of my neck. "Thanks again. Really. I keep dragging you into my mess."

Seris turned her gaze toward me. Her face was calm, unreadable as always. "It’s fine. You don’t have to worry."

"Still—"

Grumbleeeeee...

A loud, thunderous rumble echoed through the quiet street.

I paused, slowly turning my head down toward Julian. The kid’s face instantly flushed dark red. He grabbed his stomach, taking a step back and glaring at the ground. "Shut up! Don’t look at me!"

Before I could even say a word, another sound cut through the air.

Grumble...

It was a soft, high-pitched stomach growl. I blinked, shifting my gaze away from Julian and over to Seris.

Seris stood completely still. Her face remained entirely blank, but her eyes slowly averted from mine, looking off toward a distant building.

"..."

"..."

I looked at the starving underworld brat in an oversized shirt. Then I looked at Seris who came to help us.

I rubbed my temples, cursing my garbage luck.

Of course, I thought, letting out a long, exhausted sigh. Of course both of them will be starving.

I looked back at Seris, a faint, helpless smirk creeping onto my face. "Well, Lady Seris... it seems our night isn’t quite over yet. Know any late-night places that serve cake?"