“Getting the truth out of you,” a male voice called from the back.
“Making you imagine things,” a female voice added from the front row.
“Good. Give me another example.”
“Making you do something against your will,” Rowan responded from the seat in front of me.
“That takes a hell of a mind-bender but yes,” Chen said. “Another, more common and more dangerous one.”
“Coercing you into not saying something,” another voice offered from the crowd.
“That’s a good one and one many mind-bender master.” Chen's voice held a note of excitement. “In fact, it’s the most commonly used technique within the Emberkeep Guard to control confidential information.”
“Why would anyone willingly let themselves be coerced into not saying something?” Tran asked, mockery thick in his tone from the seat beside me.
“Well, it’s the law,” Chen answered, sounding almost bored. “For confidential information, you must willingly accept the coercion or face greater consequences.” Her voice sharpened. “I am not teaching you to build mental walls to resist Emberkeep Guards. I am teaching you this so wildweavers cannot enter your mind, so that if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time on this island, you have a chance.”
She let that settle. “Whether you like it or not, this island is not crime-free. And your minds, as members of a legion, are worth protecting. What you know is worth protecting from others.”
The topic made my chest tighten. It was too heavy to digest, especially after I had trained extensively with my tutors on building mental walls. Professor Chen continued addressing Tran and later explained later how to build mental walls, but my focus had already slipped. I tried to listen—truly. But my thoughts kept drifting to last night in the library.
Shakari leaned in. "What’s with you? You’ve stared through the wall for five minutes."
"I couldn’t find anything on my family," I whispered.
"And... I also saw Lorik Draventh last night."
Her eyes narrowed as she murmured: "Again?"
"He was reading Ashes of the Sun, Tears of the Moon..." I leaned closer, but she cut me off.
"Moonveils like him won’t read classics, Thea. He wasn’t there to read. This is the second time. Don’t be alone in the library! Lorik Draventh isn’t there for books," she chastised.
“It’s not like he can kill me.”
"There are worse things than dying," Shakari snapped. The words echoed Lorik’s. "Stay away from him."
She was right. My fixation on Lorik Draventh risked pulling me into darkness. I had to stop looking for him, trying to untangle his motives, stop imagining our paths crossing again.
But before I could answer Shakari, a voice cracked through the air like a whip.
Professor Chen’s golden eyes locked onto mine. “Since you’ve been paying such great attention,” she said, each word as sharp as glass, “come to the front. Now.”
I slowly stood, my heart pounding and my stomach knotted with self-conscious dread. My legs felt stiff as I walked out onto the open floor, the light now harsher under my feet, and the weight of everyone’s gaze pressed on me.
“You’ve practiced before?” Chen asked.
“With my tutors,” I responded firmly.
Her mouth tilted, but not quite into a smile. "Let’s see what The Glass Castle tutors have taught you. I want to understand the level of your preparation."
She closed the distance until all I could see were her bright eyes.
“Coercion blocking is intentional,” she said. “You do not wish for walls. You build them. You strengthen them. And you keep them standing.”
Her voice dropped lower, each word landing like a hammer. “Draw the magic from your body, feel it in your veins, your bones. Shape it. Force it into a barrier around your mind. Imagine the walls rising, brick by brick, until nothing can breach them.”
I swallowed hard and nodded.