Hollow circle, this name finally rang some bells in Clayton's mind.
Hollow Circle, now I remember in the novel there was not any top-secret organization by this name; rather, it was just a conspiracy. Something created out of a pure joke or meme. After seeing so many secret factions, readers started making meme jokes about every meeting; whenever someone was planning anything, readers would call it just another secret group. Hollow Circle was just another name like this. used in jokes but how is it real? Till now I was thinking everything with a flawed mentality; after transmigrating, I saw myself as the center of everything, but what if it's not? What if there are others or someone who arranged all this? I am not a heaven's chosen, but just a lamb made for experimenting and sacrificing.
Clayton became grim; the realization hit him pretty hard. all his confidence and wit just seemed childish, a fool's dream, he thought. The only good thing that came out of it was that he became more cautious, more dead set on finding whoever is responsible for this.
He washed his face with cold water and then made his way to their meeting point, which was asher's apartment. Clayton asked them to change the location from the Mirror rooms to be on the safe side.
He made his way through corridors that were quiet due to the night. He already used a Stimulus Stealth card to lower his presence and made his way quietly.
He finally stood in front of Asher's apartment; the gate was etched with golden A-1 signifying asher's position. The rune was made by a master for everyone to understand Asher's power or rather the power of ranking 1 in Vyrith.
He entered the apartment and was stunned for a second, probably a safety artifact, he thought. The apartment was just in name because it was a mansion even bigger than normal nobles have. Clayton apartment would look like an old-age hut in front of this.
After Eric came, they finally started planning.
Asher adjusted the collar of his uniform, eyes narrowed as he flipped through Instructor Marvin's public file on the academy archive crystal.
"So Marvin teaches Arcane Faunal Studies and Illusory Mechanics," Asher muttered, pulling up a glowing index of class records. "Neither of which is mandatory."
Clayton, standing at the other side of the rune-inscribed table, frowned. "That's already strange. You'd expect someone involved in advanced research or potential subversion to hide under bigger classes, not electives."
Eric scoffed. "No, it's actually smarter this way. Mandatory classes have more eyes—official observers, student reports, and even assessment audits. But electives? Especially weird ones?" He tapped the surface of the archive. "Those go ignored."
Clayton crossed his arms. "Right. Let's break that down. What even is Arcane Faunal Studies?"
"Creature magic," Asher said before Eric could. "The way arcane fields affect magical beasts, monster habitats, and how certain species produce spell components."
"Didn't we learn that was mostly outdated?" Clayton asked, raising a brow.
"Outdated, but still useful," Eric replied, spinning his ring. "Some fauna emit stable arcane signatures. In theory, you could use them for tracking, illusions, or even imprint manipulation if you're smart. The kind of smart someone like Marvin would exploit."
Clayton nodded slowly. "So the class could cover researching imprint interference or transferring properties."
"Exactly."
"Then Illusory Mechanics?"
Asher gestured to the screen. "It's a subbranch of illusion theory focused on sustained projections. Less about deception, more about interaction—illusion constructs that obey physics, timings, and reactions."
Eric added, "Think of it like building with glass—visible, fragile, but real enough to fool everything except raw truth. There's a reason most illusionists don't teach it. Too many variables. And too easy to corrupt."
Clayton thought back to the Mirage Cascade card. Sustained illusions, interactive layering, and advanced imprint access. It all aligned.
"So Marvin teaches the one thing that can explain the card we got—and another thing that can let him hide how it works," he said, exhaling.
"Looks like we're circling the right drain," Asher said with a grin that didn't reach his eyes.
They spent the next hour digging into the class rosters. Students, absentees, and notable performances. Marvin's lectures, on the surface, were unremarkable. He'd taught at Vyrith for four years, always on rotation between electives. No discipline notices. No faction alignment. That last part was rare. Almost everyone at the academy had a lean.
Eric tapped his comm-band and pulled up the last known footage of Marvin's lecture. It was dry—slow speech, monotonous tone, diagrams about spirit-tuned creatures and scent illusions. Students looked half asleep.
"Nothing strange," Eric muttered.
"Nothing on the surface," Asher corrected. "But look at the rune board."
Clayton leaned in. The symbols drawn by Marvin were innocuous at first glance—overlay patterns for simulating scent triggers in arcane hounds. But something in the formation looked familiar.
"Wait," Clayton said. "That central sigil. That's the same core structure used in our illusion cards."
Eric zoomed in. "Could just be a standard glyph."
Clayton shook his head. "Not with that anchor point. It's reversed—mirrored. That's not standard. That's purposeful misdirection."
Asher looked impressed. "You sure?"
A silence fell over them. Then Eric gave a low whistle.
"Well," he said, "either Marvin's more talented than his lectures suggest—or he's masking something."
Clayton stood up. "Let's assume the worst case. He's part of whoever sent the cards. Why?"
Asher answered this time. "To scout potential assets. Or seeds."
"Seeds?"
"A term from political training," Asher said. "You plant someone or something in an unstable area and wait for it to grow. A rare card, especially uncleaned, is a perfect seed. Once bound, it shapes the user, even if subtly. Then you just wait and pluck the result later."
Eric added, "And if that someone becomes powerful, you already have a string attached. Leverage."
Clayton frowned. "So Marvin could be planting seeds. But for whom?"
They all stared at the archive again.
Asher said softly, "Black Veil's the obvious guess." But they don't usually operate this visibly."
"Could be a rogue element," Eric mused. "Someone working inside the academy, maybe loosely affiliated. We don't know."
"But we can find out," Clayton said.
"How?"
Clayton reached into his satchel and pulled out a small palm-sized device—something he bought from the academy network. It was extremly pricey but with his bank account, it felt like peanuts.
An Echo Chime. Normally used for replaying duel analysis.
"I've reconfigured its rune to pick up lingering arcane residue in rooms," he said. "If we get close to Marvin's personal quarters or workroom, we might find traces from the same energy used in those illusion cards."
Asher raised an eyebrow. "That's… impressive. Also risky."
Eric smirked. "He's finally catching up."
Clayton just rolled his eyes. "I'm serious. We don't break in—we just hover. Ask questions. Act like we're interested in one of his electives."
"And if he suspects us?" Eric asked.
Asher answered with a faint smile. "Then we'll know we're right."
They spent the rest of the day mapping out the instructor towers. Marvin's rooms were in the east wing dorms, near the greenhouses—isolated, but still within main patrol routes.
"Tomorrow, then," Clayton said as they packed up. "We go as curious students. Ask about joining Illusory Mechanics. If he reacts too fast, we'll know he's on edge."
"And if not?" Asher asked.
"Then we play the long game," Eric replied. "And keep watching."
Before they parted ways, Eric paused at the door. "One more thing. If Marvin is involved, then it means someone approved his hiring. Someone higher up."
Asher's eyes darkened. "Faculty corruption?"
"Or manipulation," Eric said. "But we're going to find out."
Clayton nodded slowly. The cards. The illusion threads. Marvin. It all felt like the edge of something larger.
But they had a lead.
And this time, they were ready to follow it.