"Those are not reassuring odds."

"Those are Divine-tier odds." He straightened himself, smoothing out the wrinkles in his ridiculous cosmic tracksuit with an air of theatrical finality.

"But I’ll tell you this, and I want you to really absorb what I’m saying here. Your current Aspect? Thermal Incision? It’s cute. It’s functional. It’s a perfectly serviceable C-Rank power playing dress-up as something more impressive. Against Reyna Cabana and that storm of hers, it’ll get you killed. Messily. Probably with a lot of screaming."

His eyes gleamed with that particular brand of manic enthusiasm that meant he was enjoying this far too much. "But evolved? Taken to its logical, reality-warping conclusion? You might actually stand a chance. A real one."

Don’t, Nel’s voice cut through my thoughts like a knife. Not yet. Not before the duel. If the evolution goes wrong—and there’s a non-zero chance it will—you’ll be too mentally unstable to fight. You’ll be a drooling mess when you should be dodging lightning.

"If I don’t use it, I lose anyway."

You don’t know that.

"Yes, I do."

I stared down at the ticket in my hand. At the ominous warning text about dimensional instability and ego death that Apollo had so helpfully included. At the swirling, reality-bending pattern on the card that seemed to shift every time I looked away and back.

At Apollo’s face, which had gone suddenly, suspiciously neutral.

"What aren’t you telling me?"

"Nothing important."

"Apollo."

"Fine." He sighed, a long-suffering sound like I’d just asked him to explain quantum physics to a particularly stupid dog. "The last person who used an Aspect Evolution Ticket? Their power jumped three full tiers overnight. E-Rank garbage to legitimate B-Rank threat in the span of a single agonizing evening. It was beautiful. Dramatic. Everything I could hope for." His smile flickered. "But the transition broke something fundamental in their metaphysical architecture. They spent six months in a medically induced coma while their body desperately tried to adapt to their new reality."

"So I could win the duel but miss the entire tournament. End up bedridden and drooling while everyone else advances and builds their reputations."

"Possibly." Apollo’s grin returned, sharp and dangerous. "Or you adapt faster. You’re not exactly standard issue, Satori Nakano. That beautifully fucked-up little soul of yours has already survived dimensional travel, a form of ego death that would shatter most mortals, and full integration with memories from a completely different timeline. Your mental architecture is already warped beyond any reasonable recognition." He gestured vaguely at my chest, at the space where my heart supposedly was. "What’s one more round of metaphysical restructuring at this point? You’re practically a professional."

Fair point.

I had died once already.

Sort of.

Kaelen Leone had ceased to exist the moment his consciousness violently merged with Satori Nakano’s body. And I was what crawled out of that metaphysical car crash, stitched together from two contradictory sets of memories and a will to survive that bordered on spite. If my soul could survive that kind of existential blender treatment, it could probably handle an Aspect evolution without completely shattering into cosmic dust.

Probably.

"I’m keeping it," I said.

Thank the gods, Nel said, and I could actually feel her relief through the bond. I was preparing a very judgmental lecture about risk assessment, long-term strategic planning, and the general stupidity of using experimental items during time-sensitive operations.

"But I’m not using it yet. Not until I see what Reyna’s really capable of. Not until I know exactly what I’m countering."

Apollo’s smile returned in full force.

"Smart boy. Save the metaphysical nuke for when you actually need it." He began to fade, his form dissolving into golden motes of light. "Enjoy your new abilities. They should make the duel considerably more entertaining. For me, anyway. The Audience is going to lose their collective minds."

"Wait."

He paused mid-dissolution.

"The banner. How much longer is it active?"

"Seventy-two hours from the moment it went live. But after that first pull?" He winked, and somehow the gesture was visible even through his half-transparent face. "I’d say you’ve had enough luck for one morning. Don’t get greedy."

Then he was gone.

The golden light faded from the room, taking the oppressive weight of divine attention with it.

I was alone in the pre-dawn darkness with my new abilities and the growing, gnawing certainty that I’d just made either the best decision of my life or the absolute worst.

Congratulations on not being a complete idiot, Nel said dryly.

"Shut up."

Installing new abilities now. This may cause mild discomfort.

"Define mild."

The answer came in the form of white-hot agony that dropped me straight to my knees like someone had cut my strings.

Information poured directly into my skull like someone had cracked open my head and shoved a fire hose into my brain. Knowledge I hadn’t earned, understanding I didn’t deserve, all of it forcing itself into the meat of my consciousness whether it fit or not.

Thermal Vision settled in first, rewiring my optic nerves and teaching me how to perceive the world through heat signatures, how to track movement through solid walls by following the warmth of living bodies.

Kinetic Absorption came next, embedding itself in my muscle memory and showing me exactly how to convert incoming force into temporary bursts of power, how to turn an enemy’s strength against them. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Steel Body arrived with phantom sensations rippling across my skin, my flesh remembering—learning—what it felt like to be harder than forged iron, what it meant to be momentarily invulnerable.

Sovereign’s Mandate hummed through my entire nervous system like a live wire, connecting me to five distant points I could suddenly feel even from here. Natalia somewhere in the floors below, probably already awake and worrying. Skylar still in her room, likely smoking and thinking. Emi in the kitchen, because of course she was already making breakfast. Celeste and Akari probably huddled together somewhere, plotting strategy for my survival.

And then came Lightning Rod.

Lightning Rod felt like swallowing an entire thunderstorm and asking it to please sit still inside my chest.

My teeth buzzed with sympathetic voltage.

My hair stood on end, every strand reaching for the ceiling.

Every metal object in the room began to vibrate with electromagnetic resonance—my belt buckle, the zipper on my hoodie, the loose change on my desk all singing the same electric song.

When the installation process finally, mercifully finished, I collapsed forward onto my hands and knees.

Breathing hard through clenched teeth.

Tasting copper and ozone on my tongue.

Sweat dripping onto the floor.

Told you it would be uncomfortable.

"That," I gasped, "was not mild discomfort."

You survived. Stop complaining.

A knock sounded at my door.

Soft.

Measured.

Skylar’s distinctive rhythm.

"Come in."

She entered wearing my other hoodie, the oversized grey one that didn’t smell like Maki’s particular brand of chaos. Her indigo hair was slightly mussed, and her eyes were sharp with concern despite the early hour.

"You okay? I heard a crash."

"Fine. Just fell."

"Liar." She walked over slowly, bare feet silent on the floor. Crouched directly in front of me, close enough that I could smell clove cigarettes and something floral underneath. "You did something stupid."

"Maybe."

"Definitely." Her hand found my cheek, palm cool against my overheated skin. "You pulled the gacha, didn’t you?"

"How did you know?"

"Because you get this look afterward. Like you just stole something extremely valuable and you’re not sure if it’s going to make you rich or if it’s going to explode in your face." She tilted her head, studying me with those gradient purple eyes. "What did you get?"

"Reyna’s worst nightmare."

"Good." She leaned forward and kissed my forehead. Quick and warm, a gesture of approval rather than passion. "Don’t die on Wednesday. I’m not done being mad at you yet for keeping secrets."

Then she left.

Taking the lingering smell of clove cigarettes with her.

I pulled myself slowly off the floor, muscles protesting the movement. My legs felt like they’d been hit with a bat, which was probably the Kinetic Absorption integration settling into my bone marrow.

I checked my reflection in the window.

Same face staring back at me.

Same collection of scars that weren’t quite healed from the tournament.

Same eyes that had seen far too much for someone who was technically only eighteen years old.

But something fundamental had changed beneath the surface.

I could feel the new abilities humming just under my skin, coiled and ready. Waiting for permission to be unleashed. The Sovereign’s Mandate in particular pulsed in the back of my mind like a second heartbeat, connecting me to the women downstairs in a way that felt both invasive and oddly comforting.

Maki suddenly jumped onto the windowsill in her cat form, a sleek shadow with two tails that defied natural biology.

Her golden eyes studied me with unusual intensity.

Master feels different.

"Good different or bad different?"

Strong different. She rubbed her head against my arm, purring loudly enough to vibrate through my bones. Like you ate lightning and somehow convinced it to stay inside your body instead of burning you to ash.

"Close enough."