A thick silence fell over the room.
It didn't just settle, It pressed. It Heavy, Sudden, and Suffocating.
Layla's posture remained the same, legs still crossed, one hand resting lightly on her desk as she say on it—but something about her demeanor had changed.
Her welcoming aura was gone.
The corners of her lips stayed curved, but the warmth behind them had vanished—like a smile drawn on cold steel.
As the feeling kicked in, Levi's breathing slowing down. The pressure felt like a finger creeping up his spine and prickling at the back of his neck.
"Wh...What...?" his voice came out almost barely, like a whisper carried by fear "…what is this?"
A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
[Passive Skill: Danger Sense - Active]
The blue screen flickered into view, hanging in the air like a silent alarm bell.
Danger?
Levi's eyes darted from the screen to the woman sitting on the desk.
Their gazes met, and he froze instantly.
A chill coiled in his chest, clawing at his lungs. He swallowed hard, his throat suddenly going dry.
"Is she…?"
Layla's smile didn't fade. But beneath the elegant and gentle expression, behind those violet-blue eyes, was a quiet storm.
She was still trying to appear composed, but even Levi could see the cracks forming.
Zenon said nothing. His eyes remained cool as always. They narrowed ever so slightly.
Valtorix, on the other hand, shifted uncomfortably. His posture remained relaxed, but the twitch in his brow and the quick glance he sent Layla said enough.
He sensed it too.
A light ahem cut through the tension like a blade. It wasn't loud or filled with urgency, but it carried just enough energy to caution Layla.
"Well," he said, voice calm, "this is turning out to be... quite the interesting morning."
Layla turned her head slightly, meeting Valtorix's gaze with a slow blink and a tired sigh. It was the kind of sigh that carried more weight than words—controlled frustration masked under etiquette.
She turned away, and walked back to her seat. Her heels clicked softly on the marble floor, the sound somehow louder in the silence that followed.
She began to speak as she lowered herself into the chair. "You've brought quite a special one," she murmured, adjusting the edge of her sleeve as she leaned back. Her tone was calm again. "So, what class?"
"High school. Final year." Valtorix answered without hesitation.
Before another word could be exchanged, a new voice broke the quiet.
"Can you give us a minute?" Zenon gave Levi a glance.
The suddenness of it caught even Layla off-guard. He hadn't spoken until now—not a word—but when he did, it sliced through the atmosphere like a scalpel.
Levi blinked, then quickly nodded. "Yeah, sure."
He stepped out, shutting the door behind him a little too fast.
To him, it felt like a lifeline.
His breath left him in a sharp exhale as he leaned against the wall outside. The pressure in the room had been suffocating—sitting in a room with three people who could probably level a city block without blinking was not his idea of fun.
Back inside, the moment the door latched shut, the mood cracked like glass under weight.
Layla sat up straight, her back no longer relaxed against the chair. In one motion, she slammed her palm down on the desk.
The holographic images across its surface flickered, momentarily distorting, warping like ripples across water before stabilizing again.
"What in the name of the heavens have you brought to me now, Zenon?" she snapped, her voice no longer polished, but filled with exasperation.
She turned, eyes burning, and jabbed a finger toward the door.
"Don't tell me you didn't feel that, Professor…" she added, voice dropping as she looked at Valtorix. "Because I sure as hell did."
She stood up and began to pace around.
Her boots clicked in restless rhythm against the polished floor, each step faster than the last.
The refined composure she maintained earlier on had cracked—just slightly—but enough to reveal the storm she was hiding. She wasn't just annoyed. She was worried.
"This isn't a joke, Zenon," she said, turning sharply. "You brought someone in here... Or something... I don't understand, something I'm also sure you can barely read—and you want me to just smile and hand him a uniform?"
Her hand gestured toward the door like it burned her. "He's unstable. I don't know what he is, but it's close—too close—to whatever the hell you are."
Her eyes narrowed. "And Emilia."
Valtorix stepped forward, palms slightly raised. "Layla, breathe. You're overreacting—" He said in a low and soothing tone.
"I am not," she shot back, eyes flashing. "You of all people should understand what I'm feeling right now, Professor."
He didn't argue, just nodded slowly, his hands lowering.
Zenon, meanwhile, remained where he stood—silent, hands in his coat pockets, his gaze fixed on the floor. He didn't speak, not until the tension reached its peak.
"Please," he said, softly. "Just grant me this favour, Layla."
Layla stopped pacing. Her head turned slowly.
"Favor?" Her laugh was humorless. "This isn't about favors, Zenon. If someone dies—if that thing inside him lashes out—how do you plan to explain that to the families? To the board? To the world?"
"Even you can't just erase a catastrophe."
"The Celestial Vessel." Zenon's voice was quieter this time but the words he spoke carried so much weight it reached their ears instantly
Layla froze mid-step and Valtorix stopped mid-breath
What followed was a brief silence as both their eyes locked on Zenon instantly.
"…What did you just say?" Layla asked, voice nearly a whisper.
Zenon looked up at them, his gaze no longer calm—this time his eyes carried a seriousness the hadn't seen from him in a long time.
"That boy…" he said, "is the Celestial Vessel."
Layla's breath hitched. Her body tensed. Her pupils dilated. The sudden rush of fear and shock was impossible for her to hide.
"What?"
***
Twenty minutes had gone by.
Levi sighed and leaned back against the corridor wall, the cool touch of tile against his spine offering the only comfort he had left.
With another long exhale, he slid down slowly until he was seated, arms hanging limply by his sides.
"This is why I said I wasn't interested in the first place..."
He tilted his head back, staring at the ceiling like it held answers to his questions. His mind flashed back to Layla—her eyes, and the shift in atmosphere that felt like walking into a field rigged with explosives.
One minute she's all smiles and angelic warmth and the next, it's like he llooked at a goddess with a blade behind her back.
He shook his head.
"Jeez... What a drag..." he mumbled.
Then, the sound of the office door clicking open broke through his thoughts. Levi's head snapped up, and Zenon stepped out, calm as ever.
Levi quickly got up to his feet, stretching his limbs like he'd just returned from a marathon he never signed up for.
Zenon looked at him with a faint smile on his face, "Your class has been handled. You'll receive your uniform later."
"Cool." Levi responded, his time devoid of interest.
Zenon studied him for a moment, then placed a hand on Levi's shoulder—light but firm.
"Don't worry about her, she was just testing you."
"And you might get other tests from other people here, but you'll be fine... Trust me..."
"Felt more like a threat than a test" Levi scoffed, then gave a half-hearted chuckle. "Well... as long as today doesn't get any worse…"
As if the universe heard him, the system's screen flashed in front of his eyes again.
[System Initializing]
[Main Quest Updated in Accordance with User's Surroundings]
[New Quest: Pass the Bearer Test]
[Duration – 7 hours]
[Penalty – Complete skill reset and sealed stat growth for 30 days]
Levi's eyes widened in shock.
"Penalty?" His eyes scanned the glowing text again, his pulse quickening.
There wasn't a penalty there before. So why was there one now. And what did it mean by updated.
He swallowed hard. "Is this thing also...." He trailed off failing to complete his sentence as his thoughts raced.
Whatever the "Bearer Test" was, it didn't sound like anything he could brush off.
And the system?
Just when he thought he was beginning to understand it, It had just become far less predictable.