The academy's arena was unlike any other — an open field surrounded by floating crystal pillars, shimmering in the dawn. Each team gathered, tension thick in the air. This wasn't just training anymore — it was the first official ranking trial.
Jin's team stood at the edge, the six of them facing forward.
Yooha's voice was calm but urgent, "We all trained. Now it's about instinct. Don't hesitate. Trust."
Bo cracked his knuckles. "Let's show them what a misfit squad can do."
The first round was intense — two-on-two combat. Jin and Meiqi's synchronized attacks overwhelmed their opponents. Rei Han's precision and Bo's wild energy balanced perfectly. But it was Yooha… her battle was what no one expected.
Her match was against a student from Ghost Gordon — the very academy that cast her aside.
Whispers spread through the watching crowd.
> "Is that… her?"
"She was expelled, wasn't she?"
"The healing flame girl…"
Yooha stepped onto the battlefield, calm despite the storm in her heart. Her opponent smirked, "Still pretending you're worthy, Yooha?"
But she didn't answer with words. With one strike, she summoned her inner flame — Sunlight Rage, glowing gold and violet — overwhelming, blinding, and beautiful. She didn't just win — she dominated.
Jin watched from the sidelines, stunned.
> She's holding back. Just how much has she hidden?
After the match, Jin caught her alone near the edge of the forest behind the arena.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.
Yooha hesitated, her back turned. "Would it have changed anything?"
"It changes everything," Jin replied, stepping closer. "You carry so much alone. I thought I was the only one hiding things."
She turned to face him. Her voice barely a whisper, "Then why do you keep your journal so secret, Jin?"
He smiled softly, reaching into his coat and pulling it out. "Because if someone read it, they'd know I still dream about meeting the father who left me."
Yooha blinked in surprise. Jin never shared that with anyone — not even Bo.
A pause.
"I won't ask you to open up, Yooha. But I'll be here… when you do."
Something in her cracked. Slowly, she stepped forward and handed him the pendant from her neck. "This... is all I kept from Ghost Gordon. Burn it if you want."
He looked down at it, then back at her, and said, "No. I'll protect it."
For the first time, their shadows stood close — two hearts, broken in different ways, now finding rhythm in one silence.
And as the sun dipped, Jin wrote in his journal again:
> "Today… we won. Not just in battle. But in trust. And maybe… love."
Only Yooha stood behind him this time, reading over his shoulder, smiling.
To be continue...