Chapter 52: Catching Up
The Soul Academy's alabaster towers gleamed in the afternoon sun, their shadow cast long over the lecture halls, meditation terraces, and soul circuits that stitched the grounds into a living sanctuary of growth. The scent of soul ink and burning incense drifted through the air as Karen, Marie, Leslie, and Jim stepped through the arched gate into Lecture Hall Delta.
Inside, dozens of students filled the tiered seats, holographic glyphs dancing midair as an instructor elaborated on Soul Construct Symbiosis. Karen slid into her seat beside Marie, already flipping through her note slate.
"We've missed half a year of theory," Marie whispered, eyebrows furrowed. "This is basically advanced 1st Year content."
Karen's violet eyes scanned the projections. "We'll catch up. We've faced worse than homework."
Across the aisle, Jim yawned, trying to keep pace with the lecture. "No more sparring, no more abyss training. Just equations and charts now. Great."
Leslie leaned forward slightly, her tone calm. "This is necessary. Our practical edge means nothing without the theory to stabilize it. You want to wield a Spirit Bloom without it folding into a feedback spiral?"
He grumbled. "Fair."
The week rolled forward in a blur of theory recovery—lecture halls, soul resonance labs, metaphysical modeling classes. Their hands cramped from soul-script writing. Karen often stayed late in the soul libraries, combing through every text on Proto Domains and Soul-Bound Weapons. The pressure was real. They were no longer raw initiates—they were contenders now, and the eyes of instructors followed them with sharper focus.
Meanwhile, on the elevated tiers of the Academy, Cassandra Ikemba moved like a shadow. Her transition into the final quarter of the 2nd Year was seamless. She sat alone in advanced theoretical forums, participated in small closed-circle lectures on Spiritual Field Reorientation, and occasionally passed her cousin Joshua in the halls without a word. She was already eyeing the challenges of the 3rd Year—the deep refinement of internal worlds, soul circuit personalization, and more esoteric dueling theory.
Joshua Ikemba, now in his familiar dark teaching robes, returned to his post with the quiet exhaustion of a man juggling both students and secrets. His office filled rapidly—petitions from students, files on rising soul fluctuations near the Veil, and notes on irregular soul awakenings across other regions.
Still, he made time for his own group.
In the evenings, Joshua gathered Karen, Jim, Leslie, and Marie for closed-circle reviews in a secured chamber.
"You're all about one month behind on the Soul Compression Theory module," he said one night, arms folded as they sat around a soul-glow board. "If you want to graduate into Second Year properly, you'll have to pass the theoretical and resonance stabilization evaluations."
Karen nodded. "Understood."
Marie raised her hand. "And Cassandra?"
"She's already approved for 3rd Year elevation," Joshua replied flatly. "Her scores, conduct, and combat evaluation were flawless."
Jim exhaled. "Of course they were."
Leslie added, "And us?"
"You're on track. But don't stumble now. One mistake, and you repeat the cycle."
Joshua handed them slates filled with projected modules. "Focus on Proto Field Calculus, Spirit Cycle Transitions, and Resistance Indexing. The combat assessment is nothing compared to what you've already endured. But theory won't bend to brute force."
The group nodded in unison.
Later that night, Karen walked the Academy's moonlit terrace alone. In the distance, the towering gates of the Soul Arena shimmered faintly—soon, it would host the Cycle Advancement Trials. Soon, they would rise again.
Back in her dorm, she scrolled through her soul chart—6th Spirit Cycle stabilized. Shadow Bloom expanding. The Abyss Scythe fully bound.
Next stop: Second Year.
And beyond that... whatever Soul Island chose to throw next.