Morning light stretched across the Core Training Grounds.

  The ground was still scarred from the previous day’s battle. Cracks ran across the floor, pieces of broken concrete scattered around the field where the students had been thrown.

  Most of the Initiates were sore.

  They still had their torn uniforms.

  All of them remembered exactly how easily Haruto had defeated them.

  Kakeru rubbed his shoulder.

  “I still don’t know how someone moves that fast.”

  Charlotte sighed.

  “I want to know how he caught that lightning strike from Alexander.”

  Across the arena, Haruto stood calmly with his hands on his hips.

  Clarence stood nearby, silently observing.

  Haruto glanced across the class.

  “Good morning, students.”

  No one spoke.

  “Tough crowd.”

  Haruto coughed.

  “Yesterday,” he continued, “you all showed me something important.”

  The students listened carefully.

  “You’re strong.”

  The students straightened.

  “But that strength has made you reckless.”

  The confidence disappeared immediately.

  Haruto stepped forward.

  “You have an immense amount of energy in your cores, but you don’t realize there is more to fighting than just launching attacks.”

  He gestured toward the arena.

  “And when that failed you…”

  He paused.

  “You all panicked.”

  No one argued.

  Haruto pointed toward the center of the arena.

  “Today we will practice something simple.”

  Several students looked skeptical.

  “Core control.”

  The reaction was immediate.

  Alexander grinned.

  “Finally.”

  Aster raised an eyebrow.

  “That doesn’t seem simple.”

  Haruto ignored him.

  “Step into the arena.”

  The students spread across the training ground.

  Haruto raised one finger.

  “Your objective is simple.”

  He pointed at them one by one.

  “Activate your core.”

  A few students blinked.

  “That’s all we are doing?” Peter asked.

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  Haruto nodded.

  “There are just two rules.”

  His smile returned.

  “You cannot destroy the ground, and your Core flow must remain stable.”

  The students looked confused.

  “The flow?” Kakeru asked.

  Haruto grinned.

  “When you activate your Core, energy flows through your entire body. When your flow is stable, the core is stable. When the flow is unstable, the core is unstable.”

  He lifted his hand.

  “Eventually, you will learn to keep your Core activated constantly without any repercussions.”

  His eyes swept across the students.

  “I will train you all to maintain your Core at all times while keeping the flow stable.”

  The students nodded.

  Haruto’s grin widened.

  “Alright… begin.”

  Almost immediately, the arena exploded with power.

  “Storm Core.”

  Lightning crackled around Alexander.

  “Ice Core.”

  Ice spread across Yuki’s body.

  “Spider Core.”

  Threads formed from Charlotte’s fingertips.

  “Water Convergence.”

  Aster created a stream of water swirling around him.

  Several students activated their abilities with careful control.

  Others struggled.

  Kakeru ignited flames in his palm.

  The fire flared wildly.

  “What the—”

  He quickly forced the flames smaller.

  “This is way harder than I thought it would be.”

  Across the arena, Elaina raised her hand.

  Gravity warped around her fingers.

  The air compressed.

  A faint pressure pushed against the ground beneath her.

  Elaina adjusted her breathing.

  The pressure stabilized.

  Nearby, Archer bent the trajectory of a floating arrow in slow circles.

  Aurelia raised a small barrier around her body.

  Peter attempted to form a wall around himself.

  The barrier flickered and collapsed.

  “…I hate this.”

  Haruto walked calmly through the arena.

  Watching.

  Observing.

  Correcting.

  “Too much output.”

  “Slow down.”

  “Control the flow.”

  He stopped beside Charlotte.

  Her threads began spinning wildly.

  “Breathe,” Haruto said.

  Charlotte took a deep breath.

  The threads steadied.

  Haruto nodded and walked over to Elaina.

  Her pressure started increasing again.

  “Relax your mind.”

  Elaina looked up.

  “Y-yes, sir.”

  Haruto then looked toward Oscar.

  Elaina noticed him as well.

  His core felt… different.

  “Combat Mode: Dead Man’s Intuition.”

  The skeletal figure formed behind Oscar and merged into his body.

  At first everything seemed normal.

  Oscar’s senses sharpened.

  The world slowed slightly around him.

  But then—

  The aura grew stronger.

  The skeletal energy expanded outward.

  Cracks formed beneath Oscar’s feet.

  Students nearby stepped back.

  “Uh…”

  Aster frowned.

  “Is that supposed to happen?”

  The energy around Oscar grew larger.

  Bone fragments began forming from the ground around him.

  Oscar frowned.

  “Not yet…”

  The pressure increased.

  More bones formed.

  The ground beneath him began to fracture.

  Aster looked worried.

  “Oscar.”

  Oscar clenched his fists.

  The aura wasn’t responding.

  “Something’s wrong.”

  More bones erupted from the ground around him.

  Haruto’s eyes widened slightly.

  “…Why now?”

  Elaina felt the shift immediately.

  Why did Haruto say that?

  Her World Balancer Core reacted instinctively.

  The energy around Oscar felt…

  Wrong.

  Like it didn’t belong.

  “Haruto,” Elaina said.

  He looked at her.

  “So you know.”

  She shook her head.

  “That power…” Elaina whispered.

  Haruto turned back toward Oscar.

  Oscar tried forcing the energy down.

  It only grew stronger.

  The bones expanded violently.

  More cracks spread across the arena.

  “I can’t stop it!”

  Students began backing away.

  “Hey—!”

  “Turn it off!”

  “I’m trying!”

  The skeleton reformed behind Oscar.

  Bones rose from the ground like jagged spears.

  The entire arena trembled.

  Then—

  Haruto stepped forward.

  The pressure didn’t slow him.

  The skeletal aura slammed against him like waves.

  Haruto didn’t flinch once.

  He stopped in front of Oscar.

  Oscar’s eyes widened.

  “Haruto—”

  Haruto placed his hand on Oscar’s shoulder.

  Instantly—

  The aura collapsed.

  The skeleton crumbled.

  The bones shattered into dust.

  The pressure vanished.

  Silence filled the arena.

  Oscar dropped to one knee, breathing heavily.

  “What… was that?”

  Haruto looked down at him calmly.

  “Is this the first time it’s reacted like this?”

  Oscar frowned.

  “Yes.”

  Haruto crossed his arms.

  “You need to control how much energy you allow to flow through your body.”

  Oscar clenched his fist.

  “I didn’t even do anything.”

  Haruto raised an eyebrow.

  “Your instincts did.”

  Oscar stayed silent.

  Haruto turned toward the rest of the class.

  “This,” he said calmly,

  “is exactly why we train control.”

  He pointed toward the cracked ground.

  “You all rely on power.”

  He looked back at Oscar.

  “But without control…”

  He paused.

  “…power will destroy you.”

  The students groaned.

  Vega raised his hand.

  “The arena is already destroyed.”

  Haruto smiled.

  “Great observation.”

  He gestured to the field.

  “Now try harder not to destroy the rest.”

  The students activated their Cores again.

  Haruto walked up to Oscar.

  “Activate your Core again.”

  Oscar sighed.

  “What if I lose control again?”

  Haruto smiled.

  “Then your great mentor will save you.”

  Oscar steadied his breathing.

  Across the arena, Elaina watched.

  Her eyes narrowed slightly.

  The energy she felt earlier still bothered her.

  What are you fighting for?

  The question surfaced again.

  But now another thought joined it.

  What exactly is Oscar’s power?

  After a while, the students’ control began to improve.

  Haruto smiled.

  “Better.”

  He looked around the class.

  “This week you will learn control.”

  He gestured toward them.

  “Starting next week…”

  His smile widened.

  “…you learn teamwork.”

  The students suddenly felt nervous again.

  Because if yesterday and today proved anything—

  Haruto’s training was far from easy.