Vanessa pushed her glasses up her nose. The overhead light caught the lenses, obscuring her eyes in a sterile glare. The ambient noise around our table seemed to drop a few decibels as she spoke.

  ?"Are you entirely sure you want the answer to that, Marcus?"

  ?She lowered her voice, locking her gaze directly on mine. "The ether license system isn't just a class hierarchy. It’s the Council’s 'Containment Parameter'."

  ?"Starting with the baseline: Clear. These are the unassessed or the suppressed. They are strictly forbidden from channeling ether outside designated training zones. Next is White. Standard students. Limited ether output, restricted to low-level, supervised tasks. Then there's Silver. Individuals deemed responsible enough to handle mid-tier operations independently."

  ?Vanessa paused, her eyes flicking toward a table on the far side of the hall where the uniforms looked a little too crisp.

  ?"And Gold," she continued. "Like Alissa Valentine. Absolute trust from the Council. Unrestricted operational clearance, access to high-risk zones, and field command authority."

  ?"And Purple?" I asked, turning the dark card over in my hand. "If Gold is 'absolute trust,' then Purple is what? The benchwarmers?"

  ?"The exact opposite, Marcus." Vanessa let out a tight breath. "Purple doesn't mean trust. It means 'Maximum Surveillance'. In the eyes of the Council, your crystal is fundamentally unstable. Uncontrollable."

  ?"That's why the Council put a leash on you."

  ?The sharp clack of heels stopped right behind my chair. Alissa Valentine stood there, her chin tilted up in a posture of absolute superiority. The look in her amethyst eyes wasn't the instinctual disgust from earlier; it was the calculated gaze of someone holding a winning hand.

  ?"Vanessa forgot the most important rule," Alissa let out a short, melodic laugh. "Marcus... you have zero operational rights. You cannot accept a mission, and you cannot step foot outside this academy's walls... unless your paperwork is co-signed by at least one Gold License holder."

  ?My fingers stopped rotating the card.

  ?"Say that again?"

  ?"The Council isn't stupid enough to let a walking bomb wander the streets unescorted." Alissa leaned in slightly, the scent of frost trailing off her. "If you want a signature, you need a 'Guarantor' the Council trusts. That means a Gold. And naturally, a guarantor expects absolute obedience."

  ?She offered a chilling smile, glancing down at the gold stripe on her own chest. "Do you understand now? Your freedom has nothing to do with your firepower. It relies entirely on whether people like me decide to put pen to paper."

  ?She leaned down, her voice dropping to a whisper meant only for me.

  ?"Be a good, obedient dog, Marcus... and I might consider letting you out for a walk."

  ?Before I could formulate a response that wouldn't get me expelled, a rapid, almost skipping rhythm of footsteps approached. A petite girl with bouncing blonde curls, dressed in a uniform that looked overly pristine, darted past the other tables.

  ?Bella Florentine. She peered at the ID cards of the students she passed, her voice high-pitched and aggressively innocent.

  ?"Wow! A Clear card! Oh, another Clear over here?" She smiled so wide her eyes formed little crescents, acting like a wind-up toy stuck on the 'cheerful' setting, before coming to a sudden halt behind Alissa.

  ?Bella’s large eyes locked onto the card in my hand. Her face immediately scrunched up in exaggerated revulsion. "Eww... a Purple card, Alissa. A real Purple. How scary!"

  ?I scowled. I had no idea how to process this girl’s bizarre frequency. I just stared between Alissa and Bella with mounting suspicion.

  ?"Are you two finished?" Vanessa cut in, her tone dropping below zero. "If you're done, leave. Stop polluting our airspace."

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  ?"Sharp tongue, Vanessa Lucenna." A heavy, arrogant voice trailed in right behind the girls. Cassian Valerius approached, flanked by a bulky entourage. The atmospheric pressure around the table spiked.

  ?Bang!

  ?Ethan kicked his chair back and stood up, his massive frame blocking Cassian’s path. "Looking for a rematch, Cassian? I won't let you walk away this time."

  ?"Hah! A brute from a stripped bloodline thinks he has the right to—"

  ?"Enough."

  ?The command was flat but carried enough weight to cut through the tension. Elias Sunnier stepped into the fray, with Evie and Noah flanking him. Elias smoothly inserted himself between Ethan and Cassian, his expression completely unreadable.

  ?"Academy regulations strictly prohibit brawling in communal zones." Elias shifted his eyes to Alissa. "Alissa. Remove your entourage before I find it necessary to inform the Disciplinary Board."

  ?Alissa clicked her tongue in irritation. She lifted her chin, glaring at Elias. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Elias. You're only a Silver. You don't give orders to a Gold."

  ?Despite the bravado, Alissa knew Elias’s political leverage within the Council was too complicated to openly challenge here. She whipped her hair over her shoulder and turned on her heel.

  ?"Let's go, Bella."

  ?"Coming, Alissa~!" Bella chimed. She turned, stuck her tongue out at Elias and our group with maddening childishness, and skipped after Alissa.

  ?Cassian ground his teeth audibly. He spat on the floor—a deliberate insult—before turning away, marching off to join a cluster of heavily built students from the Valcus faction in the corner. They all watched us with open hostility.

  ?The immediate threat was gone, but a cold unease settled in my stomach. Something about Bella’s smile felt entirely synthetic.

  ?(Cut to the corridor...)

  ?Bella trailed closely behind Alissa down the marble hallway. Her steps were light, her demeanor still bubbly, but her eyes were quietly tracking Alissa’s micro-expressions.

  ?"Hey, Alissa..." Bella asked, tilting her head with innocent curiosity. "Why do you seem so interested in Marcus? He's just a Purple, right?"

  ?Alissa’s pace slowed for a fraction of a second, but she didn't look back. Her eyes were fixed forward, burning with ambition.

  ?"You don't understand, Bella." Alissa's voice was flat, but intense. "Marcus is an anomaly the Council can't control. That's why they slapped that Purple tag on him. A hazard warning."

  ?A faint, sharp smile touched Alissa's lips. "In this world, things that are easily controlled have no value. But... if I can bring the 'mad dog' that terrifies the Council to heel? If I can make him bow? The elders will have no choice but to acknowledge me. It will be the ultimate proof of my supremacy."

  ?"Ooooh... I get it! You're so smart, my lady!" Bella clapped her hands together, beaming with admiration.

  ?But as Alissa picked up her pace and walked further ahead, the innocent smile on Bella’s face slowly evaporated. It was replaced by something calculating. She let out a soft, almost imperceptible giggle, and hurried to catch up.

  ?Back at the table, the atmosphere had plunged into a heavy silence. I sat perfectly still, staring at the spot where Alissa had stood, my thumb unconsciously tracing the raised edge of the purple stripe on my card.

  ?"Seriously..." Ethan groaned, dropping back into his chair in frustration. "Did we accidentally step on a landmine on the way in? Since we got here, not a single person has looked at us without wanting to kill us."

  ?Right on cue, the heavy, dragging sound of footsteps approached. Roy Foster trudged toward the table, his arms overflowing with a chaotic pile of grey uniforms.

  ?"Hey... guys..." Roy mumbled. His voice was muffled, mostly because his cheekbone was sporting a fresh, blooming purple bruise, and his lower lip was split.

  ?Our eyes went wide.

  ?"Whoa! Roy, what hit you?!" Ethan jumped up, inspecting the damage. "Who's got a death wish?"

  ?"I did. That's the penalty for making me stand in front of the Disciplinary Professor because my team leader was too lazy to get his license!"

  ?Jinny Morgan marched up behind Roy, her arms crossed, looking absolutely murderous. Luna followed a step behind, her face as stoic as ever, though her eyes lingered on Roy's bruises with a hint of exasperation.

  ?"She hits like a freight train..." Roy muttered, dropping the pile of uniforms onto the table. "I only overslept a little bit."

  ?"A little bit is thirty minutes!" Jinny snapped.

  ?She looked at our grim faces and frowned. "Why do you all look like you just came from a funeral? Did Valentine start something again?"

  ?I gave a half-nod, picking up my uniform jacket. "Just a bit. It seems we're attracting the wrong kind of attention."

  ?"Hmph. Let them stare," Jinny flipped her hair. "Right now, you should be focusing on the Assembly Hall. If we're late because we're analyzing Roy's face, the Professor will give you worse injuries than his."

  ?Before Roy could argue, a resonant chime echoed through the cafeteria, followed by a voice that was calm but commanded absolute obedience over the PA system.

  ?"Attention. All First-Year students are to report to the Grand Assembly Hall in exactly ten minutes. Repeat. All First-Year students, report immediately."

  ?The cafeteria instantly transformed from a low murmur to controlled chaos as hundreds of students scrambled to grab their gear. Jinny’s eyes widened, and she glared at us.

  ?"Ten minutes! Did you hear that?! Move!" She grabbed Luna’s arm and practically dragged her toward the exit.

  ?I slung the grey uniform over my shoulder. The unease was still there, but my focus sharpened. I met Ethan and Vanessa's eyes amidst the rush of students.

  ?"Let's go," I said. "Time to see the face of the Professor that terrifies Jinny so much."

  ?We joined the tide of students, a mix of Clear, White, Silver, and Gold, flowing toward the Grand Assembly Hall.