Noel burst out of the study, breathing heavily. He dashed into the hallway, sprinting as if his life depended on it, leaving a room filled with stunned silence.
The servants, the healer, even the magician—none of them could believe what they had just witnessed.
Noel Vallis, the most disciplined among his peers, even by noble standards, had fled like a child.
Tears stung his eyes, blurring his vision as he stumbled forward, tripping over his own feet. But he didn't stop. He couldn't.
By the time he reached his small, secret corner in the backyard—hidden from prying eyes—his chest was heaving, and his legs felt ready to collapse.
With a ragged breath, he picked up a rock and hurled it at the koi pond, desperate to release his frustration.
But instead of the usual splash...
The water surged strangely, as if responding to an unseen command. The koi darted away in fear as a huge wave—way too big for such a small pond—rose up, reaching toward his outstretched hand.
For a single, breathless moment, the shimmering crest hovered above him, suspended by an invisible force. Then—
It crashed down.
Cold water drenched him from head to toe, leaving him gasping, frozen in place. The pond settled, rippling softly as if nothing had happened.
Noel stood there, dripping, shivering—his mind racing.
He started laughing and then tears welled in his eyes, not from sorrow this time, but from sheer, breathless exhilaration.
He had magic.
He wasn't broken.
He wasn't a failure.
But as the laughter faded, his breath hitched.
He had power. Magic answered him.
And yet…
He could never prove it.
Not to Duke Vallis.
Not to the magician.
Not to the family council.
Because the crystal had stayed dark.
His fingers curled into trembling fists.
A mage whose magic couldn't be seen—what did that make him?