Between Admission and Suspicion

[Location: Nova Academy – East Corridor, One Day After the Weapon Incident]

The academy corridors were quieter than usual today. Not because they were empty, but because the atmosphere felt like a thin net holding the cadets' breath in suspense. Everyone spoke more cautiously, exchanged more silent glances. Gossip spread like a digital virus—about the weapon that exploded, and the name quietly being linked to it.

I walked with my head down, as if each step could sink me into the floor. Trying not to meet too many eyes. But still, from behind classroom windows, shadowed hallways, and training rooms, the whispers about "that weird cadet who could hack the system" kept circling back to one name: mine.

They didn't dare point fingers directly, but their stares cut deeper than any formal accusation.

Kael walked beside me, trying to lighten the mood as usual. "Look on the bright side, Der. You're famous now! Maybe someone'll ask you out. Fame and a date—double bonus."

I sighed, thoroughly unamused. "I'd rather be scolded by a professor than be an overnight celebrity."

"Your priorities have always been weird."

"That's why I have no enemies. People don't know which part to attack."

Ryn walked silently behind us, his steps steady and nearly soundless. As usual, he didn't say much. But when we stopped in front of the empty hall, he gave me a glance—calm but cautious, something unreadable in his eyes.

"If you need an alibi, I can help," he said, without preamble.

I paused, then nodded slowly. "I didn't touch the system that day. But... someone might've used one of my old designs."

Kael raised an eyebrow. "Old like... years ago?"

"More like... a dumb teenage experiment that should've stayed buried," I replied.

[Location: Clarice's Office – Eidolon Headquarters, Eterna City]

Clarice stood tall in front of a holographic panel. The screen displayed a network map showing the interconnections between Nova Academy and several newly detected illegal tech distribution points. One blinking red node revealed a familiar connection—too familiar.

In the silent room, only the soft hum of data processors could be heard.

"Tracing the signal's gonna take time," said one of the techs from behind the data console, his voice nearly swallowed by the tension.

Clarice narrowed her eyes. "Don't rush. We need to be sure it's not a trap. But if someone did steal one of Deren's designs... we've got a problem."

She tapped a point on the screen. A faint logo appeared—an old version of Deren's miniature weapon core controller. It shouldn't still exist.

"Find out who accessed the backdoor distribution routes in the past two weeks. Prep a fallback. If this connects to an external faction, we need to seal the leak before it explodes."

[Location: Nova Academy – Restricted Library, Late Afternoon]

Nayra stood alone among the tall, silent shelves. Spotlight beams shone on the open holographic file in front of her. Her fingers scrolled through the evaluation report from the last simulation. She stopped on one page, her gaze frozen on a single name.

'Cadet D.A. demonstrates high technical response despite no formal academic record in system engineering.'

She raised an eyebrow. "Coincidences that frequent stop being coincidences."

Footsteps echoed behind her. She turned slightly—it was Tessan.

"Still curious about him?" Tessan asked, his voice flat but sharp.

Nayra closed part of the file. "If he's not one of us, he could be a threat."

Tessan stepped closer, hands behind his back. "And if he is one of us?"

Nayra looked at the screen now showing a signal correlation graph. At the center, one name glowed like a hub: Deren.

"Then we need to know who's behind him. Before the other factions move first. Because if we're not the first to figure it out... we'll end up pawns in a game he doesn't even know he's playing."

Tessan narrowed his eyes. "Or maybe... he knows far more than we think."

And in that silence, both of them realized:They had just touched a shadow far larger than one eccentric cadet.