Morning came far too quickly.
Kael hadn't slept all night.
He sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the Broken Sword.
The sword looked normal again.
Dull.
Broken.
Without an aura.
As if nothing from the previous night had ever happened.
But Kael knew it hadn't been an illusion.
He had seen the silhouette of a black hammer.
He had heard a voice call him master.
And he had seen himself in a memory.
Aren Vhal.
The name kept spinning through his mind.
Tok.
Tok.
Tok.
A knock sounded at the door.
Kael put away the Broken Sword.
"Come in."
Darius opened the door.
He looked like a mess.
"You didn't sleep either?"
Kael shook his head.
Darius sat down.
"I heard something from the academy."
"What?"
"After what happened last night, all the Awakening participants are going to undergo a second examination."
Kael furrowed his brow.
"Including me?"
"Especially you."
Darius looked at him.
"And there's something else."
"What?"
"Ardent Weapon Academy selected the thirty best participants to take a special entrance exam."
Kael gave a faint smile.
"I'm Grade F."
"That's exactly what's strange."
Darius pulled out a letter.
The Weapon Academy's emblem was printed on it.
Kael opened the letter.
There was only one sentence.
Kael Ardent, report to the Weapon Academy before sunset.
There was no explanation.
No reason.
Kael looked at Darius.
"Who sent it?"
"Elder Marcus."
Kael fell silent.
That old man clearly knew something.
But he wasn't willing to say what it was yet.
Several hours later, Kael arrived at the Weapon Academy.
The building was far larger than he had imagined.
Dozens of towers soared into the sky.
Each tower had the shape of a different weapon.
There was a Sword Tower.
A Spear Tower.
A Bow Tower.
And the tallest one of all...
The Forging Tower.
A massive statue stood in front of the gate.
A man held a hammer in his right hand and a sword in his left.
Kael stopped.
His heart began beating faster.
The statue felt familiar.
Far too familiar.
But before he could get any closer...
"Don't touch it."
A woman's voice rang out.
Kael turned around.
Lyra stood several yards away.
"You got accepted too?"
Lyra nodded.
"Grade B Frost Bow."
Kael smiled.
"Congratulations."
Lyra didn't return his smile.
Instead, her gaze fixed on the Broken Sword.
"I want to ask you something."
"What?"
"On the night it happened..."
Lyra stopped.
"You saw something, didn't you?"
Kael didn't answer.
Lyra looked into his eyes.
"You don't have to answer."
She walked past him.
"But if I were you..."
She paused for a moment.
"...I'd find out why everyone is starting to fear a Grade F sword."
Kael watched Lyra walk away.
For the first time, he realized it.
The Blood Armament wasn't the only one targeting him.
The academy was starting to take notice of him too.
And that might be even more dangerous.