Time: 08:00 AM.
Location: The Corridor Connecting Iron Bastion to Nexus Hall.
Leaving the Iron Bastion area felt like escaping from the belly of a sleeping monster. The air still smelled of metal and oil, but at least there was no longer the sound of EKG machines buzzing in my ears.
I walked shakily, each step sending a dull pain signal from my knees to my hips. Valdor's rough hospital blanket was still wrapped around my shoulders—the only barrier between the remaining chill in my body and the morning wind.
"Why did I end up on Titus's operating table?"
My mind spun, trying to rewind last night's fragmented memories like broken glass.
I remember leaving the Nexus Hall. I remember the pain—the cold eating at my bones. I remember walking towards Valdor seeking industrial warmth.
Then... fog.
And in that fog... there was Her.
(Was that real?) I thought inwardly, my eyes staring blankly at the moving corridor floor beneath my feet.
(The girl with an umbrella in the middle of the night. Gray hair. Eyes that burn. And that heat... God, that heat...)
It felt too perfect to be real. Like a delusion of a brain dying from hypothermia. My brain might have created a hallucination of a beautiful girl shaped like a "Bonfire" just to entertain me before freezing to death.
But... my neck still felt warm. At the spot where she touched me, there was a trace of residual energy that couldn't be explained by a hallucination. It was real. That heat was real. And if that heat was real, then the girl was real too.
"Boss," Kara's voice broke my reverie. She was walking beside me, fully alert, her eyes glancing at every Valdor guard we passed.
I paused for a moment, regulating my breath which still emitted a faint white vapor. I turned to the two of them—Kara and Rian.
"Titus," I said suddenly, my voice hoarse.
Rian flinched. "Y-yes, Sir?"
"Why did he come to the ICU?" I asked sharply. "Titus isn't the type for social visits. He hates me. Why would he bother coming down to the medical bay to see my corpse?"
I stared into Rian's eyes, searching for lies.
"What did he say to you while I was unconscious? Did he touch me? Did he see... my real condition?"
This was important. If Titus knew that I wasn't just "sick" but literally a leaking Heat Sink, he would use that information to destroy me. He would know my weakness: Turn off the heater, and the Praetor dies.
Kara snorted, kicking a pebble on the floor. "He came to laugh at you, Boss. Standard Titus."
"He was suspicious," added Rian, adjusting his glasses nervously. "He asked why you collapsed by the roadside. He thought it was an enemy attack or a physical failure."
"And?" I pressed.
"I lied," Rian answered quickly. "I said it was training. Operational Overload. I said you deliberately exposed yourself to extreme temperatures for Under-City combat simulation."
I was silent for a moment, then let out a sigh of relief. "Good. A lie that strokes his ego. He must have believed it because it sounds like the kind of stupid thing a Valdor person would do."
"He believed it," Kara replied. "He even looked a little impressed. Utterly insane."
I nodded, feeling a bit safer. The secret of my body was still safe, at least for now. But the secret of last night... that umbrella girl... I had to unravel that myself.
I started walking again, my steps faster this time, fueled by burning curiosity.
"Let's go," I ordered. "To the Nexus Hall. I need access to The Eye. I have to know if that umbrella girl is a ghost or a human."
(If she's a ghost, I'm insane. If she's human... I'm saved.)
Time: 08:30 AM.
Location: Praetor's Private Archive Room -- The Nexus Hall.
I didn't go back to the hospital. I forced Rian and Kara to take me back to the one place where I had absolute authority: Nexus Hall.
My body still felt like a cracked block of ice, but my mind was alight. The heat I felt last night... that was no coincidence. It was a key. And as Grand Praetor, I held the keys to every door in this city.
I sat in my work chair, a thick blanket covering my shoulders. Rian stood in front of the main console, his fingers dancing over the holographic keyboard. Kara leaned against the wall, peeling an orange with her combat knife, looking bored but alert.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Boss?" asked Kara without looking at me. "Hacking into Valdor's census database is an act of aggression. Titus could consider this a declaration of war."
"This isn't hacking," I answered hoarsely. "This is an... administrative audit."
I raised my left hand. My Magitek Gauntlet lit up.
"Rian. Activate Praetor Information Rights Protocol: Article 1. Breach Valdor's census. Search for a female student, gray hair, fiery blue eyes. Focus on thermal anomalies."
"Hacking into Valdor's military database?" Rian gulped, but his fingers were already dancing over the holographic keyboard. "Titus will go ballistic if he finds out."
"Let him rage. He owes me his life for not reporting his security negligence last night."
The large screen in front of us blinked rapidly. Data flowed like a green waterfall.
PING.
One profile locked onto the main screen.
The photo showed a face I couldn't forget. Wild gray hair like smoke, glowing blue eyes, and an expression that looked weary of the world. The umbrella girl.
NAME: SOLSTICE BURN
STATUS: 2ND YEAR STUDENT (CLASS S - INACTIVE)
AFFILIATION: IMPERIUM VALDOR
ALIAS: A WALKING DISASTER
I read the data below. My heart beat faster.
"Check her history," I commanded. "What family is she from? Who sponsored her into the academy?"
Rian tapped the screen. However, as his eyes went down to the "History & Origins" section, his brow furrowed. The screen was filled with bold black lines.
ORIGIN:DELETED/TOPSECRETORIGIN:DELETED/TOPSECRETACCESSDENIED:FORVALDORHIGHCOMMANDONLYACCESSDENIED:FORVALDORHIGHCOMMANDONLY
"Her origin data is completely locked, Praetor," Rian reported, confused. "Even with Praetor access, we can't see who her parents are or where she was recruited from. It's as if she appeared out of thin air."
Rian paused for a moment, then looked at me with a strange gaze. He adjusted his glasses, hesitating.
"Just like you, Boss."
I turned sharply. "What do you mean?"
Rian tapped a few more keys, pulling up my own data profile on a side screen.
"Aren't you also from Valdor? Although your status for the past year has been recorded as a Neutral student at Zero Point, your old data shows a Valdorian birth code."
Rian pointed to the blacked-out data line in my profile—exactly the same as Solstice's.
"And look at this... Your origin is also classified as Top Secret. No orphanage data, no parental data. Just a Valdor genetic code."
Kara choked on her orange.
"Ugh!" Kara coughed hard, staring at me with wide, disbelieving eyes. "Wait a minute. You... you're from Valdor?"
Kara looked me over from head to toe with a new expression—a mix of shock and suspicion.
"I thought you were an outcast from Aurum or a fallen noble. But Valdor? You?" Kara shook her head, laughing incredulously. "You're too... fragile to be one of us. And you're too cunning."
I fell silent. My eyes were fixed on the screen displaying two profiles side by side: Me and Solstice.
A silent monologue echoed in my head, cold and confusing.
(So... I'm from Valdor? That country of iron and fire is my home? No wonder Titus hates me in a personal way. But... why is my origin also a secret?)
(If I were just an ordinary amnesiac student, my data should be boring. But 'Top Secret'? That means someone is hiding me. Just like they're hiding this girl.)
"Rian," I cut in, changing the subject before Kara could ask more. "Check the Academy Ranking Database (Battle Prowess Top 15). I want to know how strong this girl is on paper. Show the technical details."
Rian nodded. He typed a new command.
A holographic table appeared, displaying names, affiliations, and most importantly: Mana Tier.
RANK 1: "The Singularity" - SOL (Valdor)
Mana Tier: N/A (Blackhole).
Affinity: Void/Hunger.
RANK 2: Pontifex Silas (Aethelgard)
Mana Tier: 4 (The River).
Affinity: Dual (Flora + Gale).
RANK 3: "The Glitch" - Cipher (Aurum)
Mana Tier: ? (Unstable).
RANK 4: Imperator Titus (Valdor)
Mana Tier: 3 (High Stream).
RANK 5: Wyther Ash (Senate)
Mana Tier: 3 (The Stream).
Rian hissed softly upon seeing Silas's data. He pointed to the 'Tier 4' number next to the Pontifex's name.
"Look at this, Boss. Tier 4... The River," Rian murmured, his tone a mix of awe and deep fear. "At 17 years old? That's... that's unnatural."
Rian shook his head, his face looking pessimistic. He looked down at his own hands trembling as they held the stylus.
"You know how hard it is to reach Tier 3, right? Titus and you are there, that's natural because you're elites. But Tier 4? That means Silas can manipulate local weather without incantations. He's not a student anymore, he's a walking natural disaster."
Rian's voice grew small, full of inferiority.
"As for me... I'm still Tier 1 (Mist). A thin mist. My mana scatters as soon as it leaves my skin. I study desperately every night, memorize theory until my eyes bleed, but my circuits can only light a candle. Among these monsters... I'm just vapor."
I looked at Rian for a moment. I could see the insecurity in his eyes. He was the brains of this operation, but in a world that worships magical muscle, he felt tiny.
"Don't be stupid, Rian," I said flatly. "You're Tier 1, but you can manipulate the bureaucracy that ties the necks of those Tier 4s. Without you, Silas wouldn't get his drug import permits. The pen is sharper than sorcery, remember that."
I looked back at the screen, ignoring the sentimental moment.
"Now focus. Where is Solstice Burn?"
Rian sighed, returning to professional mode even though his shoulders still looked slumped. "She's not on the Top 15 list, Sir. At all."
"Strange," I murmured. "Titus is at Rank 4. I'm at Rank 5. Even this monster named 'Sol' is at Rank 1. But Solstice Burn? Nothing."
I pointed to the name SOL on the screen.
"Sol... Sun," I whispered. "And this girl... Solstice Burn. Solstice."
My mind spun quickly, sensing a disturbing irregularity. This pattern was too neat to be a coincidence.
Sol has Void (Emptiness) power. His name is Sun, but his nature is a Black Hole that sucks in light.
Burn has Thermal (Heat) power. Her name is Solstice, and her nature is an explosive burst of energy that burns.
(This is weird. Very weird. Valdor names their best assets with a Sun theme, but gives them opposing powers. One sucks everything dry, one radiates until it explodes.)
(They are not a pair. They are two extreme errors in the same physics equation. Two anomalies that shouldn't exist.)
"She's not on the ranking not because she's weak," I said coldly. "She's not on the ranking because she's classified as a Hazard (Environmental Danger). You don't include natural disasters in sports competitions. You evacuate their stadiums."
I swiveled my chair back to face Kara.
"Kara, forget about my origin. Focus on this girl. A Walking Disaster. And the Rank 1, Sol. What do you know about this strangeness?"
Kara was silent for a moment, his face darkening. He roughly threw the remaining orange peel into the trash.
"Sol is a ghost. He's locked up in the underground Containment Unit of Valdor, wearing a two-ton suppressor suit. No one has ever seen his face," Kara said with a chilling tone. "They say he's 'hungry' for Mana. Always hungry."
"But Burn..." Kara pointed at Solstice's photo. "Everyone knows her. She's the opposite. She's always 'full'. In the training barracks, we're forbidden from being in the same room with her without thermal protection."
Kara looked at me seriously.
"She has no friends, not because she's evil, but because anyone who tries to touch her ends up in the burn unit. Titus uses her as an area-of-effect weapon. Drop her in the middle of the enemy, and five minutes later, there are no more enemies. Just ash and molten glass."
"Sol sucks everything until it's gone. Burn burns everything until it's gone. They are Valdor's two most feared anomalies. And you..." Kara stared at my still-cold chest. "...you want to play with fire with one of them?"
I was silent for a moment, processing the information.
A Walking Disaster. Secret origin. Sun anomalies.
To others, Solstice Burn is a monster to be avoided.
But to me? To this starving Heat Sink?
I remembered last night's sensation. The touch of her hand burning my skin. The peace when her heat filled the emptiness in my blood.
She is not a monster. She is a Battery. The strongest battery in the world, wasted because no one knows how to plug in the cables. And the fact that we share the same mysterious origin in Valdor... that only adds to her strategic value.
I smiled thinly. A cold smile that made Rian shiver.
"I don't want to die, Kara," I answered softly. "Quite the opposite."
I stood up, letting the blanket fall from my shoulders.
"She has excess heat. I lack heat. Valdor is stupid for letting her 'leak'. That's energy inefficiency."
I looked at Rian.
"Prepare an official invitation. Summon Solstice Burn to the Nexus Hall."
"What for, Boss?" Kara asked suspiciously. "A duel?"
"No," I answered while activating my Praetor digital stamp on Rian's tablet.
"Send an order for Mandatory Health Check-up. Use Praetor Executive Authority. Require her to come to the Nexus Hall Medical Bay tomorrow morning."
Silence.
Rian dropped his stylus. Kara gaped.
"Mandatory... Health Check-up?" Rian squeaked, his voice rising an octave. "Praetor, you want to summon a 'Walking Disaster' to our office for... a check-up? That's like inviting a dragon for a dental exam!"
"Boss, you're insane," added Kara, shaking his head in disbelief. "Even Titus wouldn't dare order her to a doctor without a platoon of guards. You want her to come here? If she's in a bad mood, this building melts!"
Rian hugged his tablet tightly, his face deathly pale. "Regulation-wise, we don't have level 5 heat containment facilities! If she comes and... explodes... insurance won't cover it, Sir! We'll die a foolish death!"
I looked at them both. Their fear was valid. But they didn't understand the thermodynamics of my body.
"She won't explode," I said calmly, my eyes glowing red as I stared at the fiery girl's photo.
"Because I will be her coolant."
"This isn't romance, Rian. It's not suicide either, Kara. This is Trade."
...
I turned away from Rian and Kara, looking at my reflection in the glass window of the Nexus Hall. The face was pale, lips blue, tired red eyes.
(Trade...)
The word tasted bitter on my tongue. I said it with such certainty, as if I were a merchant haggling over the price of wheat. But in my heart? In my heart, I knew I was betting my life on a gambling table.
Rian was right. Kara was right. I am insane.
Bringing Solstice Burn here is like bringing a nuclear bomb with a broken detonator into a conference room. She could melt this floor just by standing. She could burn me to ashes with just a wrong touch.
But they don't understand.
They didn't feel what I felt last night.
When I was lying on that asphalt, freezing and dying... her touch wasn't pain. It wasn't destructive fire.
It was a Heartbeat.
For this past year—since I woke up without memories—I've lived like a corpse powered by a machine. I eat without feeling hungry. I sleep without dreams. I am cold. Always cold.
But when her heat flowed into me... for the first time, I felt alive.
It wasn't just a battery. It was a missing piece of myself.
(Is that why we're both from Valdor? Is that why both our data is deleted?)
(Are we... fragments of a shattered whole?)
I looked at my hand, still trembling from the cold. I need her. Not because of war strategy. Not because of politics. But because without her, I am just a broken machine waiting for its time to die.
Am I afraid of her? Of course. Am I afraid she will burn me? Absolutely.
But I am more afraid of freezing to death alone in this lavish room.
"Let it be," I whispered to my reflection in the glass.
"If I have to die burning tomorrow because of a miscalculation... at least I'll die warm."
I turned back to Rian, who was typing our death warrant with trembling hands.
"Send it, Rian," I ordered firmly, masking the doubt in my heart.
"And prepare fire extinguishers. We might need a lot."