Just as the bell was about to signal the start of class, Darek stumbled through the classroom door. Ben immediately called out to him:
"Hey, Darek! You made it after all. Sit over here!"
Darek grinned sheepishly and shuffled to his seat.
Great. First day with "military supervision" and I'm still late. What a perfect start.
Mr. Markes entered the room, his voice calm but authoritative.
"Good morning, students. I believe I don't need to introduce the man at my side again."
Lieutenant Carris stepped forward, hands clasped behind his back, his gaze alert and sharp. His eyes swept across the class, assessing, disciplined. A man accustomed to silence meaning obedience.
In a firm voice, he spoke.
"I am here not only to teach you, but also to prepare you for your assignment in handling your Soulbounds. More precisely, all matters concerning Soulbounds until the official start of the ASU."
Darek sank back into his chair.
Wonderful. We're officially lab rats now.
≋⟡≋
Meanwhile, in the dojo, the rhythmic clash of steel against wood echoed through the hall. Diana moved fluidly, each strike precise, every breath controlled. Beads of sweat glistened on her forehead as Sensei Daro observed in silence.
No way I won't pull this off. I want one too…
"So…" — crash! — "…a…" — a powerful thrust thundered through the dojo — "…cool title like my brother!"
The training dummy shuddered from the impact. Diana panted, wiped the sweat from her brow, and looked at Daro.
"David truly made our country proud this time," the sensei said calmly. "'Admiral of the Skies' is certainly an honorable title—but not one born from your kind of fire."
Diana grinned, twirling the rapier in her hand.
"No worries. I want something different anyway. Something that fits me… right! 'Slayer of the Undead! HA HA HA!'"
She laughed.
Daro raised an eyebrow, mildly amused.
"A name is more than words, Diana. It reflects who you are and what you are willing to do. If you walk your path, let your blade be as resolute as your heart."
He stepped back, his voice lowering into a serious tone.
"Now continue training. Focus on the rapier. Try to take it into your soul. Imagine drawing it into yourself."
Diana closed her eyes. The room fell silent.
Then the blade in her hand began to shimmer. Its contours dissolved, glowing like liquid light. Sparks rose and drifted, as if drawn toward something—into Diana's chest.
Woah… it… it's so—
A warm glow spread through her body. The air vibrated, and for a moment it looked as if she herself had begun to shine.
"Well done, Diana," Daro said calmly. "You and your Soulbound share a strong resonance. Can you feel it?"
"Yes…" she whispered, opening her eyes. "It's like energy is flowing into me. My muscles feel different. Lighter, stronger… and yet, like something is burning inside me."
Daro nodded.
"It rests within you—warm, alive. It shows what burns inside you, not just what you can do. Your Soulbound reflects your convictions, not merely your strength. That is rare."
This feels incredible.
Diana looked down at her hands, still faintly glowing, then up at him.
"Sensei… how do you know so much about Soulbounds? They've only been known for a few days, and you talk about them like you've had experience for years."
Daro was silent for a moment. His gaze drifted somewhere far away, as if seeing something she could not.
"Sometimes, Diana," he said softly, "you can feel the waves of a storm long before it reaches the sea."
Diana crossed her arms, slightly annoyed.
"Great. Now I've got even more questions. But fine—let's see what my Soulbound can really do."
≋⟡≋
Back in the classroom, students whispered among themselves.
"Active and passive?"
"What does he mean by that?"
Darek leaned back.
What I felt last night… that must've been passive. And the pillow will probably react again once I take it out.
Carris clasped his hands behind his back, his gaze unwavering.
"You can draw your Soulbound into your soul and store it there. This grants you passive changes connected to the nature of your Bound—and in some cases even to your wishes and convictions. In the active state, it's different. It still relates to the type of Bound you possess, but the abilities it manifests are closely tied to you—your desires, your limits, your self-image. In short: your potential decides."
As pragmatic as ever, Darek thought, resting his head comfortably between his arms on the desk.
Carris flipped through his documents.
"Each of you will be assigned to a category: offensive, defensive, front support, or rear support—Soulbound or not. These are recommendations. It is up to you whether you accept them… and up to me whether you receive them."
A murmur rippled through the classroom.
"For those of you without a Soulbound yet—don't worry. Until the start of the Aquilar Soulbound University, or ASU, in two months, everyone participates in everything. At the end of this week, there will be a small evaluation. Each class will face another: support versus support, and so on. Give it your all."
Ben groaned.
"What? None of us have combat experience! And I don't even have a Soulbound…"
Carris' expression softened, if only briefly.
"It is merely to assess your current standing. No one expects perfection."
"The Bang—or the Great Resonance, as it's now called in academic circles—did not only change us, but everything around us as well."
He let the words settle, then added,
"The top performers will be rewarded. First place receives a Soul Object—relics of the Resonance. Some possess a character, some even a will of their own. Their value is immeasurable."
Darek kept his head on the desk, thinking.
Interesting. So Aquilara isn't as stingy with information as I thought.
"The ones we've obtained for this evaluation," Carris continued, "are of the lowest rank. Do not forget—we are at one of Aquilara's many average schools."
A few students still seemed fired up with motivation.
"Second place," Carris said, "wins a trip to the capital. Third place—a free pass if you're ever late or oversleep."
Darek shot upright.
"Those actually exist?"
I'm getting that.
Carris closed his files and nodded to Mr. Markes.
"I'll hand things back to Mr. Markes for today. Tomorrow, we meet on the sports field—with your Soulbounds."
As the bell rang and class ended, students began packing up. Ben nudged Darek.
"Darek, I wanted to tell you about Sokrates all day. You won't believe this—come on, you have to see it."
≋⟡≋
Later, at Ben's house, Sokrates perched on his stand, feathers gleaming, a small monocle sitting crookedly on his beak. Ben gestured proudly.
"Here he is. Sokrates, say something!"
The parrot turned his head toward Darek and said flatly,
"Say something."
Darek blinked.
"Ah. A talking parrot. Wow."
So that's the big secret.
"Hey, Sokrates! Did grandma tie that monocle on you again?"
Sokrates slowly turned his head, examined Darek, and replied in a perfectly calm voice,
"Yes. Every time. At least it's not a cheap plastic chain. Some people wear those voluntarily."
Darek's eyes went wide.
"HE CAN TALK!"
Ben grinned from ear to ear.
"Told you!"
"Yeah, but not like this!" Darek shouted.
The bird barely twitched a wing.
"You scream when you're surprised. That is… exhausting."
Darek stared at him, stunned, while Ben struggled not to laugh.
"Don't worry," Ben chuckled. "He's not nicer to me either."
Sokrates fluttered from the coffee table to the back of the couch and tilted his head, studying Darek curiously.
"A pillow as a Soulbound, huh? I didn't even know pillows could react to resonance. Fascinating."
Ben and Darek froze.
Darek narrowed his eyes, cautious.
He can see it… even while it's passive.
"Y-you can see stuff like that?" Ben stammered.
Sokrates puffed up his feathers, tapped the rim of his golden monocle, and croaked smugly,
"Yes. The monocle I was wearing during the shockwave appears to be more useful than I anticipated. I call it 'Resonance Vision.'"
He tilted his head left, then right, fixing them with a piercing stare.
"And frankly, I don't even need it to tell that a man with plastic jewelry and another with a… questionable relationship to pillows have found each other."
"H-hey!" Ben protested. "How do you even know so much about this Soulbound stuff?"
Darek nodded in agreement and added quietly,
"And what do you mean by 'relationship to pillows'?"
Sokrates flapped his wings as if laughing at their ignorance.
"I spend all day in here, Ben. And the newsman has been rather talkative lately."
His voice dropped into a rasping tone that lingered in the room longer than it should have.
≋⟡≋
The next morning. Eight o'clock sharp.
Darek was one of the first to arrive—something that surprised even him.
On time. That word feels like it has nothing to do with me.
Sunlight broke through the clouds as Ben shouted somewhere nearby,
"Hey, Darek! I think you're early—that's historic!"
Darek raised a hand without turning around.
"Maybe every day starts with a small miracle."
The sun was already blazing over the sports field when Lieutenant Carris began the lesson, as calm and unmistakable as ever.
"We'll start with a simple assessment," he said. "Bring out your Soulbounds. After that, you'll be assigned to your preliminary classes."
Mmh. I imagined this would be more… special. They're all holding school stuff.
Before anyone moved, a student hesitantly raised his hand.
"Is it just me, or are there very few offensive abilities?"
Carris nodded curtly.
"Good observation."
He made a brief, precise note and continued.
"We have eight classes with a total of two hundred and twenty-one students. Among them:
– 38 without a Soulbound,
– 43 offensive,
– 32 defensive,
– 20 front support,
– 89 rear support."
He let the numbers sink in, then said evenly,
"Front supporters assist directly in combat—they attack, defend, or enhance offense. Rear supporters operate from a distance: coordinating, analyzing, supplying. Without them, every front collapses."
"At this school," Carris continued, "many materials favor rear-support orientation—books, laptops, school supplies, even uniforms."
Ah. That's why. Makes sense.
Another student raised his hand.
"And what about Mr. Markes? What Soulbound does he have?"
Carris' expression didn't change.
"He has none. What you see is his wish—the rarest form of manifestation. Resonance formed solely from will. In his case: authority."
Whispers spread through the students. Mr. Markes straightened unconsciously.
"And rare," Carris added calmly, "is a wish I've seen manifest so clearly and so quickly."
Beside him, Mr. Markes puffed his chest slightly, as if receiving an invisible medal.
Carris scanned the field.
"Now then. Activate your Soulbounds. I want to see what you can do."
≋⟡≋
In the dojo, blades clashed.
"Again!" Sensei Daro called out calmly.
Diana stood panting in the center of the room, breath rapid, sweat running down her neck. Every strike burned in her muscles. She raised the rapier—and suddenly… silence.
Once more. Better this time.
She gathered her strength into the blade, and everything around her turned gray, lifeless, frozen—as if the world had stopped.
She moved—faster, lighter—the strike came, precise, unstoppable.
Then the effect collapsed. Color, sound, gravity returned. Diana staggered forward, completely exhausted.
Daro caught her effortlessly.
"Three activations," he said calmly. "Each lasting 0.8 seconds. Impressive."
Diana breathed heavily, but a smile flashed across her face.
"Really, Sensei?"
"Yes," he replied, studying her. "Your reflexes and cognition are accelerated. To you, it feels like time stops. But be warned—the body pays the price."
"And my passive ability?" she asked eagerly.
Daro shook his head slightly.
"Still hidden. Patience, Diana. Silence often reveals more than echo."
Her smile faded, curiosity igniting in her eyes.
"So I still have a lot to learn."
"That's enough for today. Rest for the remainder of the day," Daro said gently. "We continue tomorrow."
Her training had ended for now—but another had only just begun.