Dark Mana

Professor Voss let the weight of his words settle over the room.

Silence.

Not a single student moved. Even those who had been whispering, their attention divided just moments ago, were now completely still.

A smirk tugged at his lips as he observed the reactions—some students stiffened, others leaned forward, eyes alight with curiosity.

Elias, sitting at the back, felt his fingers tighten around the edge of his desk. Dark Mana?

The subject was practically forbidden. It was mentioned in history books, always framed as dangerous, uncontrollable, the power of madmen and tyrants. No professor had ever dared to bring it up in an actual lesson.

And yet, here was Professor Voss, saying it so casually.

Sarina Eldoria, ever bold, crossed her arms and tilted her head slightly. "And what would that be, Professor?"

Her voice was light, almost teasing, but there was a challenge beneath it.

A flicker of irritation passed through Voss's gaze as he turned to her. His eyes sharpened, and though he didn't say anything for a moment, the weight of his stare alone was enough to make Sarina tense ever so slightly.

He finally smiled, though there was no warmth in it. "I believe I was speaking."

The classroom fell silent.

Voss turned away, addressing the room again.

"Dark Mana." He let the words roll off his tongue slowly, purposefully. "I'm sure all of you have wondered about it at some point. Where it came from. Why it exists. And most importantly—why it is feared."

The tension in the air thickened. Even the students who had been indifferent at first now sat up straight, their curiosity piqued.

Elias leaned forward slightly.

Voss took a step forward, his hands clasped behind his back.

"History books will tell you that Dark Mana is an unnatural force, something corrupt, something vile." He glanced at the students, his gaze challenging. "But tell me, has anyone ever questioned why?"

Silence.

Voss chuckled. "Of course not. You've been raised to follow blindly, to accept what you're told without ever wondering if it's true." He let out a sigh, shaking his head. "How disappointing."

A student near the front hesitantly raised a hand. "But… isn't Dark Mana dangerous?"

Voss turned to him with an almost amused look. "Dangerous?" He repeated the word like it was a joke. "So is fire. So is lightning. So is every element you fools wield so proudly. Yet, do you call those unnatural? Do you call those corrupt?"

The student paled slightly, looking down.

Voss smirked and continued.

"Let me tell you something that none of your past professors had the courage to say." He turned, walking toward the blackboard, dragging a piece of chalk across it in sharp, precise strokes.

A single word appeared.

Origin.

He tapped the board once before turning back to the class.

"Dark Mana was the first."

A hushed murmur spread across the room. Elias's fingers twitched slightly.

"The very first form of mana to exist," Voss continued smoothly, his voice steady and sure. "Before there were elements, before there was order, before mana was split and tamed—there was darkness."

He stepped away from the board, looking over the students again.

"It was only later, when the world feared what it could not understand, that people decided to label it as 'forbidden'. They feared its power. They feared what it could do. So, they erased its history, buried its teachings, and called it evil." He smiled, sharp and knowing. "And you all believed them."

The room was utterly silent now.

Elias felt something stir in his chest. He had always suspected that the way the Academy taught things was… selective. But this?

This was something else entirely.

Voss leaned against his desk, crossing his arms. "Now, let me ask you all a question."

Professor Voss's dark eyes flicked through the room, searching, reading, dissecting each student in mere seconds. Then, his gaze settled on Elias.

The silence stretched.

Then—

"What if everything you've ever been taught was a lie?"

A ripple of unease spread through the students. Some stiffened, some glanced at each other, searching for reassurance, for answers they knew they didn't have.

Elias, however, remained unfazed.

"If everything is a lie." he said, his voice steady, "then what would be the truth, Professor?"

His words carried across the room with confidence, with challenge. A stark contrast to the hushed whispers of uncertainty surrounding him.

"How are you going to justify Dark Mana?"

A smirk tugged at the corner of Voss's lips.

Interesting.

He took slow, deliberate steps toward Elias, the sharp sound of his boots against the floor the only noise in the heavy silence.

As he reached the back of the room, he stopped beside Elias's desk. He didn't speak right away. Instead, he looked down at the boy in front of him, as if assessing, measuring, deciding whether he was even worthy of an answer.

Then, finally—

"Tell me." Voss began, tilting his head slightly. "If a blade is placed in the hands of a soldier, does it become justice?"

Elias didn't answer immediately. His sharp mind processed the words, turning them over. He knew there was more.

"And if the same blade is given to a murderer, does it become evil?" Voss continued, his voice deceptively soft, yet filled with an undeniable weight.

Elias met his gaze, unblinking. "It depends on how it is used."

Voss's smirk deepened.

"Precisely."

He turned away then, addressing the rest of the class.

"Magic is no different."

His voice carried power, each syllable curling into the air like a spell of its own.

"The world decided long ago that light mana was good, and dark mana was evil. But the truth?" He let his gaze sweep over the room again.

"Magic has no morality."

He let those words settle.

"Only the wielder does."

Elias leaned back slightly in his chair, eyes narrowing.

Now this was getting interesting.