In the prestigious Frostblade Clan Academy, 15-year-old prodigy ​​Aria Frostblade​​ faces public humiliation during her magical assessment. Once hailed as a wunderkind who summoned primal froststorms, she now fails to ignite even basic flames, with the clan’s ​​Arcane Crystal Stele​​ branding her a "Novice Mage"—a verdict met with jeers from nobles and her own father’s wrath. Humiliated and ostracized, Aria retreats to a shadowed alcove, where she is confronted by ​​Lira​​, an elven guardian bearing a dagger etched with ancient runes. Lira reminds Aria of a vow made three winters ago: to reclaim the stolen ​​Incineration Art​​, a forbidden artifact tied to a prophecy involving a ​​phoenix reborn in flames​​ and a ​​curse of burning snow​​. As Lira transfers the dagger to Aria, the relic awakens visions of a fractured realm and awakens dormant magic within her. The chapter closes with a foreboding snowfall—each flake ablaze—a harbinger of the forbidden magic and fractured legacy about to unfold.