They called him the “Silent Tactician” long before the blood dried on the banners. Before the journal was found. Before history remembered the cost.

At the heart of an elite academy where talent alone isn't enough, Nitsuo stands not with power or prestige—but with silence, strategy, and an unreadable gaze. To most, he’s just a quiet second-year. To a few, he is the mind behind impossible victories. Behind his team’s laughter, behind the storm of noble politics and magical duels, he records everything—in a worn leather journal that one day will be all that remains.

Each student here dreams of glory. Each battle is more than a test; it’s a war for identity. Magic is studied like warcraft. Words are weapons. Feelings are hidden behind masks, until a single moment—a mistake, a duel, a glance too long—cracks them wide open.

But Nitsuo didn’t come here to win. He came to carry a promise. And while his comrades clash and grow, while quiet rivalries bloom into unspoken feelings and accidental flirts stir the hearts of more than one, a war far beyond the school walls brews in the dark.

Because legends aren't born—they’re remembered. And The Silent Tactician doesn’t speak to be heard. He writes so his story won't be lost.

Location: Outskirts of Narshia Border Woods


Even the wind passed through the trees without a whisper.


She still smiled. Still twirled her fingers and made a small firebird chase Riya's bun through the air.


Still teased Leander when his sword snagged on a branch.


And her jokes didn't land like they used to — not because they weren't funny,


She cast her illusions faster than normal. Sharper. Too clean.


At one point, she summoned a puppet shaped like Nitsuo holding a sign that said:


> "This is your commander. This is your commander on silence."


She was watching Anna's hands — how tightly they clenched between spells.


Later, Riya sat beside Anna near the stream, brushing her hair into a braid.


She didn't say much. Just hummed softly.


But she watched the way Anna stared at her reflection — and how her eyes darted away before they could settle.


Riya offered a flower to place in her braid. Anna took it, smiled, then quietly… dropped it behind her back when Riya wasn't looking.


That evening, as firelight flickered between tents, Leander plopped down next to Anna with a loud groan.


> "If I have to eat one more moss-flavored biscuit, I'm going to declare war on the entire plant kingdom."


> "You'd lose. Trees have more spine than you."


> "What kind of question is that? Of course I'm okay."


> "That's not a real smile," he said. "Yours usually makes Elric flinch."


She paused. Then forced a grin, wide and toothy.


> "Now you look like a deranged squirrel."


She laughed — briefly. But it stopped too fast.


And when it did, something in her face sagged.


> "Do you think we'll go back to who we were after all this?"


Leander stared at the fire. His voice was almost too soft.


She wiped the edge of her eye with the back of her glove.


That night, she wrote something in her notebook by the fire.


I just pray we notice before it shatters."


Final Lines – Nitsuo's Journal (Unspoken Entry)


Chapter 72 - Chapter 70 – When Silence Presses Too Hard