CHAPTER 170: A SPARK.

(A/N Big thanks to everyone for the Power stones and Golden tickets, they mean a lot. As usual, please don’t hesitate to comment or drop a review. ENJOY)

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"I’m beyond your calculations," he said with a shrug.

Jessica smirked. "You and your mouth..."

But she let it go.

"In any case," she said, leaning back, "I came for the other matter." Her voice shifted into something more official. "Any progress on breaking through?"

The breeze shifted around them. Orion closed the history book slowly, eyes sharpening.

His breakthrough was close—agonizingly close.

And Jessica could clearly feel it.

He met her gaze.

"...I’m working on it."

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Orion shut his book and rested it on the table beside him. Jessica’s gaze was direct—probing, but patient.

They had danced around this topic long enough.

His breakthrough.

The Ascendant Rank.

The point where one awakened their concept — the very foundation of their future strength, identity, and trajectory.

A step that changed everything.

And for a full year and a few months now... he had been stuck.

He wasn’t stagnant — not by a long shot.

He had absorbed mana endlessly, refined it, compressed it, fortified it. His Nexus had expanded far beyond what anyone in his rank should possess. His mana density rivaled Ascendants. His control was razor-precise. Even his affinity connection—time and space—had deepened into something unreal.

But the system had not moved.

His status still labelled him as Peak Apprentice.

Still balancing on the razor-thin edge.

The threshold of the concept awakening.

Jessica studied him quietly. "You look frustrated."

"I’m not," Orion said.

It was only half a lie.

"You’ve been consolidating longer than anyone expected," she continued. "Doran thought you would break through months ago. Even Rhaena made a few bets about your timing."

"I’m honored," Orion said dryly.

Jessica chuckled. "Look, Orion. The Ascendant Rank isn’t about power, or mana density, or even affinity mastery. Those help, yes—but they’re not the determinant. The spark is internal. It needs something to trigger it."

A spark.

Exactly the thing he had been searching for.

"What kind of spark?" Orion asked.

Jessica shrugged. "Varies. Some get it from pressure. Some from danger. Some from clarity. Some from emotional upheaval. Others from inspiration or victory. It’s not something you can force."

Orion leaned back in his chair, the breeze tugging lightly at the strands of his hair.

"I’ve pushed my Nexus to the edge," he said. "I’ve gone through every training regimen we’ve built. My techniques, my affinities—everything has grown. But I still haven’t registered the breakthrough. That only happens when the concept itself forms, right?"

Jessica nodded.

"The moment your mind settles on what you embody, you will know instantly. Your mana signature will shift. The concept will take shape."

Orion folded his arms. "So what do you think I’m missing?"

"Patience," Jessica said immediately.

Orion blinked once. "Seriously?"

"Yes," Jessica said, lips curling. "The kind of patience that’s hard for geniuses like you. You’re used to breakthroughs that make sense. This one won’t. It never does. It’s messy. Personal."

Her eyes softened.

"All you need is the right moment. The spark you’re subconsciously waiting for."

Orion didn’t respond.

Mostly because... she wasn’t wrong.

His mind kept circling back to the rumored event after graduation.

Something real.

Something dangerous.

Something that could push him.

But he needed confirmation.

"Jessica," he said, watching her carefully. "This rumor about the post-A1 event. There’s something happening, isn’t there?"

Jessica’s lips twitched.

A very knowing smile.

She didn’t say yes.

She didn’t say no.

She just smirked.

"Orion, whether or not something is happening isn’t for me to tell you," she said. "But trust me—when the time is right, Rhaena or Doran will inform you. Properly and officially."

Meaning she knew.

Meaning the rumor was real.

Meaning something was coming.

But she wasn’t allowed to say it.

Orion exhaled sharply through his nose.

More waiting.

Jessica leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees. "You’re trying to predict danger again."

"I’m trying to be ready," Orion corrected.

"You’re always ready," Jessica shot back. "That’s your problem. You think the world is constantly moving around you—but sometimes it’s fine to let it move without you for a few moments."

Orion raised an eyebrow.

Jessica rolled her eyes. "I’m saying you need to act like a teen once in a while. Even Rhaena says you’re an emotionally retired old man."

"He said that?" Orion asked.

"Multiple times."

Orion sighed into his palms. "Of course he did."

Jessica stood up, brushing invisible dust from her coat. "You’ve done everything you can for now. When your spark comes, it comes. Forcing it only delays it."

Orion looked up at her.

"What happens if the spark never comes?"

Jessica gave him a very direct look.

"Oh, it will."

He didn’t know why she sounded so sure.

Or how she could say it with so much confidence.

But she said it like it was fact, not possibility.

She straightened her gloves. "In any case... you should go to the party."

Orion stared at her. "Why?"

"Because it might be your last one for a while." She smirked. "Once you break through to Ascendant... let’s just say your life won’t be peaceful anymore."

Orion’s fingers tightened slightly.

Jessica pointed at him. "And before you say anything—yes, that was a hint. I may or may not know things."

"That’s not helpful."

"It’s not supposed to be," she said cheerfully.

She stepped back, spatial coordinates already collapsing around her.

"Go, Orion. Enjoy your night. Annoy Caelum. Make Seris roll her eyes. Do something normal. Your concept won’t run away."

Orion opened his mouth to answer—

But she vanished with a soft pulse of spatial energy.

Silence returned to the balcony.

Orion leaned back in his chair, staring up at the dimming sky.

A party.

A breakthrough.

A rumored event.

A strange new girl everyone was suddenly obsessed with.

And a spark he desperately needed.

He drew in a slow breath.

He stood.

Looked out over the academy grounds—

And whispered:

"...Status."