Chapter 83: Calm Before the Storm
The Grand Assembly Hall slowly emptied.
Students lingered in small groups, still talking about Squad Seven.
For the first time...
Noah’s name was known throughout Valhalla Academy.
Not because of rumors.
Because of results.
Eric admired the silver medal hanging around his neck.
"...I’m never taking this off."
Luna looked at him.
"You’ll wear it while sleeping."
"I absolutely will."
Sophia laughed.
"You’ll probably wear it in the bath too."
Eric pretended to think.
"...That’s actually not a bad idea."
Even Noah smiled.
It had been a long time since the five of them had simply enjoyed each other’s company.
Later that afternoon...
Professor Ingrid gathered Squad Seven on Training Field Three.
Unlike the other fields...
It was empty.
No spectators.
No students.
Just the five of them.
She stood with her hands behind her back.
"I have no intention of making today difficult."
Eric looked genuinely shocked.
"...Are you feeling alright, Professor?"
Without warning...
A wooden practice sword struck him squarely on the forehead.
Thump!
"Ow!"
Professor Ingrid lowered her arm.
"I said I wouldn’t make training difficult."
"I never said I wouldn’t throw things."
Luna folded her arms.
"Fair."
A rare chuckle escaped Damien.
Professor Ingrid’s expression softened.
Only slightly.
"You’ve all changed."
She looked at each of them in turn.
"Eric."
"You’ve stopped relying solely on strength."
He straightened instinctively.
"Sophia."
"You’re trusting your instincts instead of doubting every spell."
Sophia nodded quietly.
"Luna."
"You’ve begun fighting alongside people instead of around them."
Luna looked away with a faint smile.
"Damien."
"You’ve started making decisions before you’ve gathered every answer."
Damien adjusted his glasses.
"...I’m still getting used to that."
Finally...
She stopped before Noah.
"You’ve learned..."
"...that leadership isn’t standing in front."
"It’s knowing where everyone should stand."
Noah bowed his head slightly.
"I still have a long way to go."
Professor Ingrid smiled.
"Good."
"The day you believe you’ve learned everything..."
"...is the day you stop growing."
She turned away.
"Training is canceled."
Five confused voices answered at once.
"...What?"
"You heard me."
"Go."
"Eat."
"Sleep."
"Talk."
"Argue."
"Live like students."
Her voice became quieter.
"Because one day..."
"...you may not have the chance."
No one joked after that.
That evening...
Squad Seven gathered at the academy café.
The small building overlooked a quiet lake inside the academy grounds.
Warm lights reflected across the water.
Students laughed around nearby tables.
For once...
No missions.
No mysteries.
No ancient ruins.
Just friends sharing dinner.
Eric somehow ordered enough food for three people.
Sophia stared.
"...Where does it all go?"
Eric pointed at himself proudly.
"Natural talent."
Luna muttered,
"Natural disaster."
Damien quietly sipped his tea.
"This..."
He looked around the table.
"...is nice."
Everyone paused.
Then smiled.
Because Damien almost never said things like that.
As the evening drew on...
The conversation drifted from training...
To childhood stories...
To embarrassing academy moments.
Even Noah shared one.
He admitted that on his first day...
He had gotten lost trying to find the library.
Eric laughed so hard he nearly fell out of his chair.
From another corner of the café...
Laura Esteria sat alone beside the window.
A book rested open in front of her.
She wasn’t reading it.
Instead...
She occasionally glanced toward Squad Seven.
Watching them laugh.
Watching Noah smile.
For a brief moment...
Her usually distant expression softened.
Then she quietly returned to her book.
Near the entrance...
Cain Draven walked past the café.
He glanced inside.
Saw the group laughing together.
Then continued on without interrupting.
Above the academy...
The evening sky slowly darkened.
Stars appeared one by one.
Peace settled over Valhalla.
Far away...
Beyond kingdoms.
Beyond mountains.
Beyond the reach of ordinary maps.
A massive stone gate stood in complete silence.
Its surface was covered in ancient chains.
Each chain bore countless glowing seals.
One of those seals...
Suddenly dimmed.
Not broken.
Just...
Weaker.
An unseen voice echoed through the endless darkness beyond the gate.
"The first promise has been fulfilled..."
Silence answered.
Then another voice.
Older.
Colder.
"Then let them enjoy their peace."
A pause.
"It never lasts."
The chains trembled once.
Then everything became still again.
Morning arrived quietly over Valhalla Academy.
Golden sunlight poured across the white towers.
Students hurried to lectures.
Instructors crossed the courtyards.
Everything appeared...
Perfectly ordinary.
Inside the Headmaster’s Tower...
It wasn’t.
A long rectangular table occupied the center of the meeting room.
Around it sat every senior instructor.
Professor Ingrid.
Professor Astrid.
The captains of the academy knights.
Department heads.
Even several retired masters had been summoned.
At the head of the table...
Headmaster Alaric slowly opened the silver case delivered the previous day.
Inside...
Rested a single black envelope.
Its wax seal bore seven different crests arranged around a golden crown.
Nobody spoke.
Alaric carefully broke the seal.
The letter unfolded by itself.
Golden words slowly appeared upon the parchment.
To the Esteemed Headmaster of Valhalla Academy...
By unanimous agreement of the Seven Great Kingdoms...
Valhalla Academy is formally invited to participate in the upcoming Grand Academies Gathering.
Representatives are to arrive within six months.
May honor decide the worthy.
The room remained silent.
One elderly instructor smiled.
"...It’s time again."
Professor Ingrid folded her arms.
"Earlier than expected."
Astrid nodded.
"The kingdoms must be worried."
Alaric carefully folded the invitation.
"We’ll discuss our representatives later."
His golden eyes became thoughtful.
"But first..."
"...our students need time."
Far below...
Students knew nothing of the meeting.
Training continued as usual.
Noah practiced sword forms with Eric.
Wood clashed against wood.
Neither held back.
Eric swung downward.
Noah stepped aside.
The strike missed.
"You’ve gotten faster."
Eric laughed.
"So have you."
Nearby...
Sophia practiced barriers.
Luna repeatedly attacked them from impossible angles.
Damien observed quietly, making notes in a small notebook.
Professor Ingrid watched all five.
She smiled to herself.
Not because they were strong.
Because...
They trusted one another.
From another training field...
Laura Esteria calmly defeated three senior students in succession.
Not with overwhelming force.
With flawless precision.
The match ended before most students realized it had begun.
Elsewhere...
Cain Draven stood alone beneath an old oak tree.
His sword rested across his knees.
Eyes closed.
Meditating.
Across the academy...
The next generation quietly sharpened itself.
Unaware...
That the world beyond the walls was already beginning to move.
That evening...
Noah stood once more on the balcony outside his dormitory.
The academy lights shimmered below.
He reached into his pocket.
The Sixth King’s journal.
He didn’t open it.
Not tonight.
Instead...
He looked toward the distant mountains.
"...One step at a time."
He whispered.
Behind him...
Eric opened the dormitory window.
"Leader!"
"We’re ordering dinner."
"You coming?"
Noah smiled.
"I’ll be there."
He turned away from the mountains.
For now...
His place was here.
With Squad Seven.
Far beyond Valhalla Academy...
In the capital of the Holy Kingdom...
Messengers rode in every direction.
To mountain academies.
To imperial academies.
To coastal academies.
To academies hidden deep within ancient forests.
One by one...
Silver invitations arrived.
In a frozen northern fortress...
A young woman with ice-blue hair caught one without looking up from her training.
She smiled.
"So..."
"It finally begins."
Within a desert academy...
A spear-wielding youth laughed as he read the invitation.
"I’ve waited years for this."
On an island surrounded by storms...
A boy sheathed his sword.
"Valhalla..."
"I hope your reputation is deserved."
And somewhere...
Inside a candlelit chamber...
Lucien quietly placed his own invitation onto a table.
He looked toward the night sky through an open window.
"...The continent will soon gather."
He closed his eyes.
"And so..."
"...will fate."
The wind carried his words away.
High above the clouds...
The tiny crimson crack in the sky remained.
Almost invisible.
Watching.
Waiting.
Patient.
End of Volume 1
A promise was inherited.
A village found peace.
A squad became a family.
And beyond the academy walls... the world quietly prepared for the next Chapter of Noah Blackwood’s journey.