Path of the Unmentioned: The Missing Piece

The classroom buzzed with the usual pre-lecture noise.

Students chatting in low voices, chairs scraping against the floor.

Books and notebooks being shuffled around. And the occasional burst of laughter breaking through the hum.

Kyle sat slouched in his usual spot near the back row, lazily twirling a pen between his fingers.

Across from him. Luna leaned over his desk. As she jabbed her finger at his notebook.

"Okay, explain it again," she demanded, her tone sharp.

She pointed at the messy scribbles of ice magic circle diagrams on his page.

"How are you picking this up so fast? I've been practicing ice magic since forever, and somehow you're already catching up?"

Kyle gave her a cocky smirk. "Skill issue."

A loud laugh exploded from Reo. Who was sitting sideways in his chair nearby, balancing on two legs.

"Damn, Luna. Even I felt that burn."

Luna's eye twitched. Without even glancing at him. She swung her fist sideways and slammed it into Reo's gut.

"OOF—!" Reo doubled over, gasping as his chair tipped backward.

He hit the ground with a solid thud, groaning in pain.

Luna cracked her knuckles, turning back to Kyle with a dangerous smile. "You were saying something... sunshine?"

Kyle's confidence vanished in an instant. He swallowed hard. "...No, ma'am."

Reo wheezed from the floor. Still holding his stomach. "Totally worth it."

Luna gave a satisfied huff and finally sat down in her own seat, grumbling about "stupid prodigies" under her breath.

Kyle let out a slow breath, rubbing his temple.

'Why are girls so scary these days?' he thought.

Aurelia, Seraphina, Eleanora, Anastasia, Luna.

All of them had this intimidating presence when they got serious.

It was like walking a tightrope above lava. One wrong step, and you were toast.

Kyle made a mental note to stay on their good sides.

His thoughts drifted for a moment. Back to the call he'd had with Mira the night before.

For once, she'd sounded happy. Not forced-happy, but genuinely lighter.

"Lila's responding to the new treatments," she had told him.

"She sat up on her own today. Even colored in her book for a whole hour without her hands shaking."

The relief in her voice had been clear.

For the first time since he'd met her. Mira didn't sound like she was barely holding things together.

She'd even talked about starting her training again. Now that she wasn't working so many shifts to afford Lila's medicine.

A small smile formed on Kyle's face. Maybe, things were starting to look up.

SLAM.

The classroom door slid open with a loud whoosh. Silencing everything at once.

Instructor Crater walked in. His heavy boots stomping against the floor as he made his way to the front.

He dropped a thick stack of books onto the podium with a thundering thud. The sound echoed through the room like a judge's gavel.

Every student immediately straightened up.

Crater didn't need to shout to get attention. His cold stare could probably stop a dragon mid-flight.

He scanned the classroom slowly. Pausing for a moment on Reo. still on the floor. Before speaking.

"Up. Now."

Reo jumped to his feet and scrambled into his chair. Looking like a dog caught chewing shoes.

He glared at Luna. Who just smiled innocently and faced forward.

Crater cleared his throat. His voice rough and gravelly.

"Before we begin, a reminder: your midterms are in one week. Start studying now, unless you enjoy failure."

The room groaned collectively. Kyle slumped further into his seat. 'Midterms already?'

Crater ignored the reactions and snapped his fingers. A glowing holographic map shimmered to life above the podium, spinning slowly in the air.

It showed the massive world of Aevorath in fine, glowing detail.

"Today. We'll revise geopolitical divisions of Aevorath."

Kyle leaned in slightly. His quill twirling between his fingers again.

If Kyle had to guess. Aevorath was at least four times bigger than Earth.

"Aevorath is divided into four main continents," Crater began. Pointing at the glowing landmasses.

Each one lit up in turn.

"First, the Human Domain." A green region blinked.

"Second, the Elven Dominion." A cool blue area lit up next.

"Third, the Dwarven Strongholds." A rocky, amber-colored region glowed.

"And finally, the Demi-Human Territories." A deep violet land spread out in the east.

Kyle's mind wandered a bit. Living outside your own domain wasn't illegal. But it was far from easy.

Elves saw humans as clumsy and slow with mana.

Demi-humans mocked their weak bodies.

And dwarves just thought humans were plain stupid.

'We're the jack-of-all-trades', Kyle thought. 'But masters of none.'

"The Human Domain itself is split into three powers," Crater said. Zooming the map closer.

Borders and symbols appeared on the green landmass.

"The Argent Empire," he said, and a silver crest shimmered over the western lands.

"The Noctis Empire." A dark emblem lit up in the east.

"And Aserion, led by the Hero's Association." A red symbol pulsed in the south.

"These nations aren't at war," Crater added, "but don't mistake that for friendship."

Kyle's gaze was drawn to the center of the continent. Where a small golden light flickered.

"And right here," Crater continued. Pointing at the glowing spot, "is Valthreas."

"This is where Solvayne Academy is located. We're independent. We don't answer to any empire or faction. Only to Principal Lucien Aetheris."

Some students sat up a little straighter. Pride filled the room for a moment, and Kyle didn't blame them.

Valthreas's freedom made it special. Almost sacred, in a world full of political pressure and control.

Crater zoomed the map out again until the full planet was visible. Large sections were now marked in blood red.

"These areas," he said, his tone lower.

"Are uninhabitable. At least for us. Mana density there are too high. Even elves, who were born from mana itself, can't survive long in those places."

He paused. Letting the image settle in.

"The creatures that do survive there?" His eyes swept the room.

"They're monsters. The kind of beasts that would make even Radiant-ranked Awakeners think twice."

A heavy silence settled over the room.

Kyle tightened his grip on his quill.

'And we still don't even know half of what's out there' he thought to himself.

Suddenly, a hand shot up from the middle row.

It was Jace. One of the louder students in the class.

"Professor," he asked, "where do the demon races live then?"

The temperature in the room seemed to drop. Crater's usual stern face turned even darker. He paused for a long moment before answering.

"That… is a complicated question." He tapped the podium, and the holographic map appeared again.

This time. It showed red pulsing marks scattered all over the continents.

"About 200 years ago. Something no one had ever seen before happened."

The image zoomed in on one spot where a swirling vortex of red and black energy opened up.

"The first Demon Gate appeared without any warning. This was nothing like the dungeons or mana rifts we're used to."

"It was something completely different."

Kyle leaned forward, forgetting his quill.

The image showed shadowy figures coming out of the gate.

Creatures that looked like humans but with bat-like wings, long sharp claws, and black skin that seemed to swallow the light around them.

But what made Kyle's heart race was their eyes. They glowed bright red and showed clear intelligence.

"At first. People thought these were just monsters," Crater said.

"But they were wrong. These creatures could talk, make plans, and even negotiate when it helped them."

"The stronger demons..." He waved his hand, and the image shifted to show a demon that looked almost human except for horns and bat-like wings.

"They can look almost exactly like us."

The hologram zoomed out. Showing many gates opening across Aevorath.

"Wherever these gates opened. Destruction followed. We call their home the Demon World. But no one who's gone there has ever come back."

A quiet murmur spread through the class. Crater's voice got heavier.

"But the demons aren't the only problem. The gates also release something worse. Beasts we call the Corrupted."

The image changed again. Showing twisted versions of normal monsters.

Their bodies looked warped, dripping with black mist.

"These are regular animals or monsters, changed by demonic mana. They lose their minds and become pure destruction, attacking anything alive."

Kyle felt sick. He had fought Corrupted monsters before during the train attack.

But seeing this now made it worse. They were just part of a much bigger, darker problem.

"The only good thing," Crater said, "is that the demon threat forced all the races of Aevorath to unite. They signed the Great Treaty, standing together against this enemy."

The bells rang, signaling the end of class. Crater snapped his fingers and the hologram faded away into tiny sparks of light.

"That's all for today. We'll finish this next class. And don't forget. Midterms are coming. Study hard."

———