Grand Return System-Chapter 11: The Quiet Pride of Frost

The Quiet Pride of Frost

Foot rooted to the floor, Shera held his breath, teeth tight, throat locked against the thing he’d seen. A silence pressed in where words should go. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Her chin dipped a touch, Selena’s gaze steady - blue and quiet like morning light on still water.

"Guardian Elder Shera, is there a problem?"

Suddenly, her voice carried a soft kind of respect.

Warmth spread through her, quiet but sure. Something long held tight began to loosen.

His face froze when he realized what just happened

It felt like a quiet revenge.

It hit her suddenly - how little they grasped what her teacher had truly offered. Quiet moments shaped her, not grand gestures. That care slipped under the noise of daily life like a whisper through cracks. Most people overlooked it entirely. She carried those lessons without naming them. Only now did their weight become clear.

Lucky thing, looking back - not one of you picked me at the time. Had someone done so, would I ever have walked beside him... tasted that potion others chase through lifetimes?

Memories flickered.

Leon’s still gaze.

His confidence.

Quiet strength showed up whenever people spoke badly of him.

That calm walk made sense only later. His skill level sits beyond what most folks measure easily.

A real master thinks like this.

She knew clearly:

Out of nowhere, she climbed fast - fueled by the Divine Ice Bones and that rare pill made from sacred marrow. Not just any artifact, it sat close to immortal-grade in value. Masters at the top, even someone as strong as Shera, could spend lifetimes chasing such a thing without success.

Still, he handed it over fast - no pause at all.

Beyond that point, they saw things differently.

Heat built up inside Shera, held tight just below the skin. Yet Mike standing there kept it from boiling over. A sharp glance - cold, bitter - landed on Selena instead.

As if his silence spoke volumes

Hold on a moment. Despite that lucky break, you alongside your mentor remain invisible at Celestis Academy.

Beneath Shera’s slow-burning anger, Mike moved in quieter currents. Stillness shaped his mind, where hers boiled.

Something feels off here. Is it possible Leon isn’t the useless nobody the whispers claimed - could that version even be real?

It made his stomach twist - yet lit a quiet spark inside.

Besides knowing that, he got another thing too:

Fueled by years of tension, Shera carried a deep resentment for the Amethyst Summit Division.

Back then, with Revered Zeon still around, Shera kept quiet. Only after he was gone did things shift bit by bit - small slights at first, growing heavier each day, a steady weight pressing on Leon. Quiet jabs piled up, unseen but felt, shaping days into something harder to bear.

And now?

Bursting through the stillness came Selena’s mind at full force.

Oldest in her class at the Amethyst Summit Division - her path might follow past patterns. Should time echo what came before, leadership could pass to her, step by quiet step.

Fear followed power, so when Shera gained strength - real strength - rest slipped away like smoke through fingers.

Competition was coming.

Truth be told... Mike embraced it. Hard times spark flames. From those flames, resilience was shaped.

Back he spun, his words softening once more.

"Child, how long has your Teacher been in seclusion? Did he say when he would emerge?"

Selena paused a moment before dipping her head just a bit.

"Teacher didn’t say. If there is something important, Headmaster, you may tell me. I will pass the message on when he exits seclusion."

Mike nodded.

"It’s nothing urgent. In three months, the Seven Division Martial Meeting will be held. I came to ask whether the Amethyst Summit Division intends to participate."

Still, even if just one pupil remained, the question needed asking. That responsibility came with being Headmaster.

"Seven Division Martial Meeting..."

Selena’s eyes brightened.

Far before today, Leon talked about it. Still true now.

Fingers brushing her sides, she stood taller. Her words held firm.

"Headmaster, my Teacher told me beforehand. The Amethyst Summit Division will participate."

A whisper floated through the air above the rocks. Cold silence followed, much like ice drifting down a high gust. Sound thinned out, barely touching the edge of hearing

Something started here - enough to rattle every corner of the academy. It didn’t whisper. It hit hard.