Chapter 7: The Fourth Edge
It started with another letter.
Kiel found it tucked under his plate in the dining hall—delivered without sound, without fanfare, sealed in black wax with a silver gear pressed into it.
The crest of House Gorge.
He didn't open it right away. Just held it between his fingers, thinking.
Across the table, Anna raised a brow. "That from Elesio?"
"No," Kiel said, slowly turning the envelope. "This one's colder."
Elesio sat beside them, poking at his food. "Tool-using families use black seal letters for formal announcements. High-ranking changes. Team formations."
Anna tilted her head. "You saying someone else is joining us?"
Kiel broke the seal.
Effective immediately, you are now assigned a fourth squad member for continued live trials and missions.Noban Gorge, Scythe Class.Arrival: Today.First assignment briefing: Tomorrow.
There was no greeting. No reason. Just fact.
Anna blinked. "Wait—Gorge? Like the Gorge family?"
Elesio gave a quiet nod. "Tacticians. Weapon handlers. Inventors. Best scythe-users in the country. Maybe in the continent."
Kiel folded the letter and slipped it into his coat. "Looks like someone wants to make our team a spectacle."
They met her that afternoon.
The three of them were on the south practice field when a figure approached across the grass. Not walking fast. Just steady, deliberate.
She was tall, maybe Kiel's height, with long dark silver hair tied up in a thick braid that swung behind her like a rope. Her eyes were sharp—amber, not gold, and very still. She wore the academy uniform, though hers had subtle differences: reinforced sleeves, lined gloves, a harness strapped across her back.
And attached to that harness was a weapon almost as tall as she was—a black-handled scythe with etched crimson runes along the blade.
She stopped a few feet from them.
"Noban Gorge," she said. "I've been assigned to your squad."
No small talk. No smile. Just like that.
Anna blinked. "Well… hello to you, too."
Elesio, as always, stayed silent for a moment, then stepped forward. "Elesio Cordeon. Rifle class."
Noban nodded once. "I know."
She looked at Kiel. "You're the dual-class."
Kiel nodded. "Kiel Ardent."
"I've heard about you," she said. Her eyes didn't leave his.
Anna raised a brow. "And me? Nothing?"
"You're the Valor," Noban said, not unkindly. "Everyone's heard of you."
Anna smiled tightly. "I'll take that as a compliment."
There was a pause—long enough to stretch.
Elesio finally asked, "You requested to join us?"
Noban shook her head. "I was assigned. The Gorge family works with the academy. They wanted me here because of him."
She nodded toward Kiel again.
Kiel frowned. "Why me?"
Noban answered plainly. "Because something ancient is following you. And they think I can help control it."
That hit like cold water.
Kiel looked at her, trying to read between the lines.
"You talk like someone who's seen it."
"I haven't," she said. "But I've felt something like it before. Once. Long ago."
Elesio gave her a sidelong glance. "And what do you feel when you look at him now?"
Noban hesitated.
"…Pressure. Like standing near a locked vault with something dangerous inside. You're not leaking power. But something's pushing against the inside of you."
Kiel said nothing.
Anna stepped forward. "Well, since you're part of the team now, you'll need to understand something."
Noban looked at her.
"We don't follow family rules here. We don't care about status or politics. We have each other's backs. That's it."
Noban was quiet for a second. Then nodded. "Understood."
That Night
The four of them sat in the team dormitory's shared room. The space had been modified—larger than most rooms, with four beds, a round table, and a large window overlooking the courtyard.
Noban claimed the corner bed without speaking.
Elesio started cleaning his rifle.
Anna doodled battle formations in her spellbook.
Kiel stared out the window.
After a while, Noban spoke.
"I don't like working with groups."
Elesio didn't look up. "We noticed."
"I'm not here to make friends."
"That's fine," Anna said. "But if you leave us hanging in a fight, you won't last long."
"I won't leave you," Noban said. "I'll die before I abandon a team. That's the Gorge way."
Kiel turned from the window. "Then why don't you like working with people?"
Noban met his eyes. For once, her voice softened.
"Because every team I've ever been on… ended badly."
Silence followed.
Kiel nodded slowly. "Then maybe this time, we won't."
Later, alone in the hall…
Elesio stood outside the dormitory, staring up at the night sky.
He didn't flinch when Noban stepped beside him.
"You're watching him, aren't you?" she said quietly.
Elesio didn't deny it. "He's changing. Fast."
Noban folded her arms. "You think he's a threat?"
"I don't know yet."
She was quiet, then said: "He's scared."
Elesio nodded. "That's what worries me."
Noban glanced at him, her voice low. "You know what it's like to carry a name. A legacy. You know what it's like to be expected to kill clean, with no questions."
Elesio's jaw tensed slightly. "Yeah."
"So maybe instead of watching him… we help him."
Elesio didn't answer.
Not yet.