Brando checked the KryoWatch display as he walked through the Academy corridors.

  [Current Status]

  [Stage: Violet One]

  [Ability: Predator Ice - Base]

  [Ability: Rust Ice - Level 9]

  [Progress to next level: 23%]

  A day of intensive training with Rusty had paid off. The Rust Ice had become stronger and faster. Now it could corrode metal effectively. Brando hadn't found new materials for his Predator Ice to devour and unlock new abilities, but that didn't matter. He had perfected the corrosive ability he already had until it was useful in combat.

  The Academy corridors buzzed with life that Monday morning. Students moved in groups toward the classroom, and voices bounced off the volcanic stone walls. It was the day of Esposito's final test.

  As he walked, Brando noticed the glances of other students on him. Some were curious, others suspicious. He could hear the whispers following him as he passed.

  "That's the Zeta..." "They say he disappeared for a week..." "I bet he gets destroyed today..."

  Brando ignored them. They only knew what they'd heard in gossip. They had no idea what had really happened.

  "Hey, puppy!" Giordano's voice echoed in the corridor. He was leaning against a column with his arms crossed and his usual grin plastered on his face.

  "His name is Rusty now," Brando said without stopping.

  Giordano pushed off from the column and fell in beside them. "Rusty? Seriously?"

  "Everything in my room is rusted. Seemed appropriate."

  "Well, at least it's better than 'puppy.'" Giordano bent down to scratch behind Rusty's ears. Then, addressing Brando, he asked, "So, Casadei, you've been unreachable for a week. Where did you disappear to?"

  "I needed to train too. I did such an intense week of Cold meditation that I've transformed into a Zen monk. And what are you worried about anyway? I can take care of myself."

  "Do you have any idea how many times I knocked on your door?" Giordano's smile vanished. "Seriously, I was starting to worry. There are rumors going around."

  Brando stopped, looking around to make sure no one was listening.

  "What kind of rumors?"

  "Bianca Ruggeri. She's been seen at the low-ranked infirmary a lot this week. Apparently spent hours there."

  Brando maintained a neutral expression, but his heart accelerated. "And that's supposed to concern me?"

  "I don't know. But it's strange, isn't it? Ruggeri suddenly taking an interest in the lowest ranks?" Giordano lowered his voice. "And then there's that business with the Daedalus."

  "The Daedalus?" Brando repeated, a shiver running down his spine.

  "Someone entered without authorization. And, coincidentally, Ruggeri was seen there too."

  "Daedalus... would be?"

  Giordano studied him carefully. "A training facility beneath the Academy. Access reserved for higher ranks." He paused. "Or at least it should be."

  "Interesting," Brando murmured, changing the subject. "What about you? Progress?"

  "[Violet Two] since yesterday. Ripa got there a few days earlier. We're the fastest in the group." He stared at him. "But we're not talking about me."

  Brando looked away. "There's nothing to talk about."

  "You disappear for a week. Ruggeri visits the infirmary. Someone sneaks into the Daedalus. And Ruggeri is always in the middle of it." Giordano stopped in front of him. "Too many coincidences, don't you think?"

  "Maybe you should focus on your own business, and that's it. How could it involve me? Do you think Bianca Ruggeri is interested in me?" Brando replied tersely.

  "Whatever you say." Giordano shook his head. "Esposito's test is today. Have you at least reached [Violet One]?"

  "I know it's today." Brando resumed walking.

  "And?" Giordano followed him.

  "And what?"

  Giordano ran a hand over his face. "Esposito is just waiting for a reason to throw you out. If you haven't reached the minimum level..."

  "Then it'll be an interesting day," Brando concluded, opening the classroom door.

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  As they entered, the other students turned to look at them. The whispers intensified, but Brando paid no attention. He sat at his usual place in the back, Giordano at his side and Rusty curled up at his feet.

  Bianca Ruggeri was sitting in the last row. Brando glanced at her imperceptibly, but Bianca pretended not to know him. Perhaps she didn't want to arouse any suspicion.

  The door opened again, and Esposito entered the classroom. His eyes scanned the class, stopping for a moment on Bianca. The birthmark on his cheek pulsed once.

  "Today," he said, his voice firm, "is the test day."

  He headed toward the desk. "Only those who have reached [Violet One Stage] may stay. The others must leave. Now."

  No one moved.

  "Very well." Esposito pulled out his KryoWatch. "Let's call the roll of levels. When I call your name, show your ice."

  Silence followed as students began to shift nervously at their desks.

  "Ripa."

  The giant rose with a fluid movement despite his bulk. For a moment he seemed to hesitate, then took a deep breath. He created a perfect sphere of ice that floated above his palm. The display on Esposito's KryoWatch flashed with a faint hum.

  [Violet Two Stage - Confirmed]

  A slight murmur of admiration ran through the classroom. Ripa nodded with satisfaction and sat back down, shoulders relaxed.

  "Volpe."

  Giordano stood up with a smile. His ice sphere appeared in a manner similar to Davide Ripa's.

  [Violet Two Stage - Confirmed]

  The names continued. Some students created their ice with confidence, others with difficulty. Some simply failed.

  "Casadei."

  The silence that fell over the class was different. Students leaned forward at their desks, some already smiling at the imminent humiliation of the Zeta rank, others simply curious to witness the inevitable failure. Even Esposito seemed almost pleased.

  Brando rose slowly from his desk, and Rusty crouched beside him with his third eye glowing in anticipation. For a couple of seconds, Brando hesitated. His wrist tingled with the desire to unleash his true power. He could show his real ice, the predator one with its dark streaks and unnatural hunger, or even the rust one. But that would be madness. For all he knew, he could end up becoming a laboratory specimen.

  He felt the weight of gazes fixed on him. He noticed Giordano watching him with an indecipherable expression. He saw the poorly concealed anticipation in Esposito's eyes. He then concentrated his willpower in the most standard way possible. The ice formed above his palm in a perfectly standard violet sphere. No dark veins, no visible anomalies. At that moment, Esposito's KryoWatch emitted a series of strange beeps.

  [Analysis in progress...]

  [Unstable energy pattern]

  [Recalibrating...]

  [Violet One Stage - Confirmed]

  Esposito stared at the display, then at Brando, then back at the display. The birthmark on his cheek pulsed frantically.

  "Impossible," he murmured.

  The whispers resumed, more intense.

  "A Zeta?"

  "In one week?"

  "Must be a mistake..."

  "He cheated, for sure..."

  "How is that possible?"

  Voices overlapped, creating a buzz that filled the classroom. Esposito raised a hand to silence the class. "The KryoWatch doesn't lie. But this..." He approached Brando, studying the sphere. "This shouldn't be possible."

  The students looked at each other. They were all confused by what they had just seen.

  "A Delta rank," Esposito said with a voice dripping with disbelief, "already has difficulty reaching this level so quickly. An Epsilon, when they manage it, means they've worked so hard they've completely stopped resting."

  He stepped back, shaking his head. "But a Zeta who gets there in a week is like climbing a mountain barehand with one leg and during a storm. It's simply impossible."

  Esposito grabbed him by the uniform suspenders, furious.

  "What trick did you use, orphan?" he hissed.

  But Brando didn't lower his gaze. With a gesture of great strength of mind, he simply shrugged.

  The teacher studied him for a long moment, then released him with a shove that nearly made him stumble backward. Brando regained his balance unhurriedly, adjusting his uniform with deliberate movements.

  "Those who haven't reached [Violet One Stage]," he finally said, his voice harder than usual, "out of the classroom. Now."

  Five students stood up. As they passed Brando, their gazes oscillated between envy and suspicion.

  "The rest of you," Esposito headed for the door, "follow me to the practice area. It's time to see what you can really do."

  However, there was something strange: Bianca Ruggeri hadn't been called for the demonstration, and everyone wondered why. In any case, the girl followed the group.

  Early morning light filtered through the skylights of the practice area. The circular arena developed on two levels. The ground floor consisted of a perfect circle twenty meters in diameter and a balcony that ran around the entire perimeter, raised two meters and protected by black metal railings. The students lined up along the balcony with Esposito standing in front of them.

  "Fourteen students," Esposito said in a voice that bounced off the curved walls. "Seven duels. Three minutes each. Ice is not a toy. This test will determine if you are worthy for the excursion that will take place outside the Great Dome."

  The silence exploded into a chaos of excited voices.

  "Outside the Dome?"

  "Is this a joke?"

  "It's never happened before!"

  "The Glacials..."

  "Silence!" Esposito's voice restored order. "Yes, you heard correctly. Those who pass this test will have the opportunity to see what lies beyond the Great Dome. But only the best..." His penetrating gaze fell on Brando. "...will be able to participate."

  "The rules are simple," Esposito continued after taking a long moment. "I'll call you in pairs, and you'll challenge each other in a duel. Cold powers are obviously allowed. Three minutes to prove your worth. Here's the first match: Casadei versus Ripa!"

  Silence fell in the arena like a blade of ice. Even Bianca's attention was immediately captured. Ripa moved toward the stairs with the lethal grace of a predator confident in his superiority. Brando felt blood pulsing in his veins: he could already have his revenge.

  Rusty emitted a low sound. His third eye glowed with a strange light, as if sensing something the others couldn't see.

  "Be careful," Giordano said. "Esposito is trying to screw you over again."

  Brando descended into the arena, nodding to Giordano. Now, fifteen meters of volcanic stone separated him from Ripa, seeming like an abyss to cross against a Violet Two. The battle was certainly uneven, but Brando couldn't afford to lose, not against him. Not after what had happened.

  "Begin at my signal," Esposito said. The birthmark on his cheek pulsed to the rhythm of Brando's Cold Veins.

  Ripa created a perfect sphere of ice, ready to strike. And Brando concentrated. For now, only normal ice. But beneath his skin, the Cold Veins pulsed strangely, as if responding to a distant call.

  The two stared at each other with an air of defiance. Neither wanted to lose.

  And after a few interminable seconds, came the signal.

  "Go!"