CHAPTER 41: CHAPTER 41: GROWTH EARNED, GIFTS DESERVED

The air inside the ruin hadn’t changed much. Still thick with energy, still humming with that strange calm Arden had come to recognize.

Rael, though, was less composed.

"Was it really okay to just... scam them like that?" he asked, a bit too fast, his voice low but tense. "Those were the five great clans. What if they come after us?"

Arden didn’t even slow his steps.

"They won’t," he said simply. "Not while I still have control over the ruin. They won’t risk it."

"But still—"

"They’re cautious, Rael. Scared, even. No one’s going to try anything stupid when they know I hold the key to something they desperately want. They’d rather bite their tongues than lose access."

Rael said nothing more. He just let out a breath, slower this time, as he let the energy around him settle into his senses.

The ruin responded. Soft pulses of aether wrapped around him like a slow tide, and his eyes widened slightly as he felt its density.

"It’s exactly like I heard," he muttered, more to himself now.

Without wasting another second, he dropped to a seated position, his hands already shifting into his meditation stance. Nyra wasn’t far behind. She’d been eyeing the flow of aether since they stepped inside, and now that it was safe, she slipped into her own routine.

Arden looked at them both before settling into his own spot, though he didn’t sit yet.

"Push hard this time," he said, voice level but with a firm undertone. "Especially you, Nyra. You’re right on the edge of Vein Surge. Use this."

She opened her eyes just briefly and nodded once before closing them again, already tuning in to the pulse of the ruin.

"The gifts I took off those greedy old men..." Arden continued with a slight grin, "...aren’t just bribes. They’ll be your rewards when you break through. Make them count."

Motivation lit their features in quiet ways, but it was there. The next stretch of days fell into a steady rhythm, draw in the aether, refine the core, stretch the limits. When they couldn’t absorb more, they sparred. Sometimes against Zephyra, who moved with sharp precision despite her size, and sometimes with Arden, though he rarely pushed them too hard.

The training was harsh, but the ruin made it worthwhile.

Eventually, it was Nyra who showed the first shift.

Her core pulsed stronger, her breath slowed and deepened, and that sharp hum of breakthrough rippled in the air around her. When her eyes opened, they held the edge of something more, power steadied by control.

A grin tugged at her lips as she looked at her hands.

The refinement had taken root. She wasn’t just stronger, she was sharper, cleaner. A dual affinity like hers was never able to stabilize, but now the difference was clear.

She was stepping into a new league.

And it was only the beginning.

Nyra stood, stretching lightly as the air around her calmed. Her core still buzzed from the breakthrough, but there was something more in her eyes now, an itch to move, to test, to show.

She glanced over at Arden, who had just returned from checking a section deeper in the ruin.

"Up for a quick spar?" she asked, her tone casual but her expression said otherwise. "Unless you’re scared I might actually hit you this time."

Arden gave a small smirk and shook his head slowly. "You break through once and suddenly think I’m rusty?"

"I didn’t say that," she replied, already walking a few steps away to give them space. "But you were watching. I know you noticed."

He followed, rolling his shoulders once. "Yeah. I noticed. Let’s see how far that growth goes."

They stood across from each other, the atmosphere around them still charged with aether. Nyra’s stance dropped into something light, mobile. Her fingers moved in a blur, and the wind around her shifted almost instantly, sharper, and faster. Then, shards of ice formed along the wind currents and burst forward in a tight, spiraling arc.

Arden moved calmly, sidestepping, weaving through the attack as if he’d seen it before. He didn’t rush, didn’t even counter right away.

"Clean execution," he said as he avoided a sudden frost blade that aimed for his chest. "Your flow’s smoother now."

Nyra didn’t slow. The wind picked up again, colder this time, and she spun with it, sending a wide burst of ice-laced gusts in his direction. Then she dropped low and redirected the flow, kicking up a cloud of frost mist to blind him.

It was fast. Sharper than her old moves.

Arden stepped back once, but only once. Then, without warning, a thick spike of ice erupted beneath his feet, almost catching him off balance.

His eyes narrowed, just slightly.

"Clever."

Then, just as the spike shattered into cold dust, his body shimmered faintly. A flicker of light pulsed across his skin and the ground beneath him pulsed with a subtle thrum. His life signature, Feedback Loop activated as the sudden burst of movement regenerated a small flicker of essence, just enough to steady him.

And then, he moved.

In the space of a breath, he closed the distance between them. One palm brushed aside her final gust of wind, the other tapped her shoulder lightly, forcing her momentum to shift. She stumbled.

"Too open," he said simply.

Before she could hit the ground, he was already reaching down.

She took his hand, breathing hard, a smile tugging at her mouth.

"You saw that spike, though."

"I did," he nodded. "And it almost got me."

She grinned. "Almost."

He helped her up, brushing off the frost that clung to his sleeve. "You’ve earned this," he said, pulling something from his pack. A folded cloth, shimmering faintly with threads of blue and silver.

"The Aether-Threaded Spellcloth," he said. "One of the offerings from the clans. It’ll help you be efficient with even tougher spells, maybe even amplify your dual casting."

Nyra’s eyes widened just a little. "You’re serious?"

"I don’t hand out shiny gifts for nothing," Arden said. "This one, you earned."

She nodded, not bothering to hide the pride on her face. "Thanks," she said, softer now.

He nodded once in return, and she walked back toward the others.

Rael had seen it all, arms crossed, still processing the fight. He let out a breath, then closed his eyes and sat back down, crossing his legs.

No words. He didn’t need to say anything. His silence was resolve.

A/N:

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