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I study him. "You seem remarkably proud of this."

"It took effort." He answers.

"To burn cloth?" I ask.

Caelen points toward him. "This is why no one is allowed to practice unsupervised manifestation in the residential towers."

"I was supervised." Rhyven argues.

"By Dax."

"That's generous," Dax says.

Caelen turns back around before the conversation can get worse. "There are three bells before the first class period, two at midday, and three at curfew."

Dax leans closer to me. "If you hear four, run."

I look at him. "Four bells?"

Soren nods solemnly. "No one agrees what the fourth bell means."

"There is no fourth bell," Caelen says.

"That's what they want you to believe," Dax replies. "Who is they?"

Dax considers this. "Authority."

Caelen rubs one hand over his face. "It's a first-year story." He starts.

"A third-year disappeared after hearing it," Lyss finishes.

Maelis turns a page. "His name was Kian. He graduated and opened a bakery."

Dax looks offended. "You ruin everything."

"I value accuracy."

I glance toward Caelen. "So there's no fourth bell."

Not a question.

"No." A pause. "Probably." He keeps walking. I stare after him.

"Probably?"

Soren smiles at me. "Welcome to Varethia."

The Great Hall looks entirely different without floating chandeliers and formalwear. The Crystal Dome remains far above us, but morning sunlight has replaced candlelight.

Workers clear the final tables from last night's ceremony while students cross the marble floor in every direction. At the center, the blood basin is gone. Only the Academy crest remains carved beneath where it stood. Six symbols arranged around a circular design I do not recognize. I slow. For a moment, I remember my blood resting against the dark stone instead of disappearing. One second. Two. Three.

Caelen notices that I've fallen behind. "You coming?"

I look away from the crest. "Yes."

He waits until I reach him before continuing. "The Great Hall is used for assemblies, ceremonies, formal duels and examinations." He starts.

"Formal duels?" I ask.