The Academy of Masks

"If you would burn the empire, learn where it keeps the oil."

Location: The Royal Academy of Nirael

Built on marble stolen from fallen kingdoms, the Academy was where nobles trained their heirs to rule, seduce, betray, and kill all with grace.

Sprawling towers. Forbidden libraries. A dueling arena made of obsidian and phoenix glass.

And masks.

Everyone wore masks literal and symbolic.

Instructors in gold.

Nobles in silver.

Servants in cloth.

And one new student... in ash-black porcelain.

His name on the register?

Cael Thorn.

His origin? "Minor Northern House."

His test scores? Perfect.

No one knew the truth.

Only Saelyn who had sent him here not just to hide…

but to steal.

The Mission

Beneath the Academy, in its oldest sealed wing, lies the First Codex

a living manuscript that once belonged to the ancient Flamebearers.

The Veil buried it.

The Court erased its name.

And now, only the Academy held what remained.

Aelios had one task:

Awaken the Codex.

Burn its name into the world again.

And take back what was stolen.

Day One

He was barely inside the gates when trouble began.

A duel public and humiliating declared by a noble's son.

"You there," sneered the challenger, a brute named Velric.

"You're from the north. That means you crawl. Kneel."

Aelios tilted his mask. "Would you like me to kneel… before or after I break your arm?"

Gasps.

Velric lunged.

Aelios didn't move.

He slid.

A blur.

One twist, one strike

Velric's blade was in the ground.

His body, in the fountain.

His pride, shattered.

The courtyard fell silent.

Some students sneered.

Others… watched.

Especially one.

Seren -In Disguise

Now an instructor under the alias "Mistress Vale," Seren watched from the balcony.

She'd seen his footwork.

Too elegant for a commoner.

Too confident for a first-year.

And then she saw the flare of heat around him.

Invisible to most.

But to her?

It was flame.

Her memories stirred.

"That's him," she whispered.

"But why is he here?"

That Night Secret Library

Candlelight danced as Aelios crept through the sealed wing.

Each door burned at his touch.

Each symbol, familiar.

Each whisper, welcoming.

Then he found it.

The Codex.

Bound in dragonhide.

Breathing.

Waiting.

"You remember me," Aelios whispered.

"I am not a stranger to your pages."

The book opened.

Symbols rose like fireflies, dancing in the air and a voice poured from the pages:

"Welcome, Flameborn.

The empire thought us dead.

But fire only sleeps."

Two Shadows Meet

As he turned, the air shifted.

Seren stood in the doorway, blade unsheathed, eyes wide.

She had followed him.

She had seen the book.

She had seen him.

And for the first time

Aelios took off his mask.

No more lies.

Just flame and silence between them.

Her grip tightened.

"I should turn you in."

"Then do it," he said, voice low.

"But look me in the eyes when you betray the only truth you've ever known."