Valmont Series - Inheritance Code

Chapter 5.3 - Visibility Index : Activated

Aria didn't feel different.

But the system did.

Since accepting Luc Raveneau's Prestige Link, her ONYX had pulsed more times than usual. Not visibly. Not disruptively.

Just... enough.

Enough for Lyric to report a 14% uptick in system attention markers.

Enough for her Veritas designation to shift — quietly replaced "Rising" by a new icon: "Watchlist" a black-rimmed diamond edged in crimson glow.

Enough for minor privileges to move silently into place — Like the system had decided she mattered.

Not for Aurora.

Not even for Allegra.

For her.

And not because she ranked higher. She didn't.

She and Aurora had already caught the system's attention — the Solara challenge had seen to that.

But this was different.

Luc Raveneau didn't make Prestige Links often.

According to Lyric, he hadn't initiated a single one in over two cycles.

The system had flagged this one as a deviation — a calculated move that didn't align with his prior behavior.

And in Avalon, deviation meant instability.

And instability always came under watch.

He hadn't followed up.

He just moved the board.

That thought stayed with her as she walked the gold-veined corridor into the Veritas Gallery — where elegance watched more than it welcomed.

When she reached the table, Allegra was already there — perfectly composed, sipping a Starblossom Crème from a low glass with a gold-threaded rim.

Aurora sat across from her, arms folded, expression unreadable — though her eyes were watching everything.

Allegra looked up and grinned.

"Well. You're alive."

Aria slid into the seat beside her, calm as ever.

"Should I not be?"

"After that link?" Allegra lifted a brow, all faux-innocence.

"Luc Raveneau doesn't usually mark girls. He... references them."

She swirled her drink. "Quietly. Temporarily. Without responsibility."

Her tone wasn't cruel — just accurate.

"You, on the other hand? He didn't reference you. He linked you. That's a move."

Aria didn't flinch.

"I thought stacking connections was considered a net gain for Solarians."

Allegra swirled her glass once before answering.

"True," Allegra said. "But that's math. Luc doesn't behave like math — he's a narrative."

She paused, her gaze steady.

"And your Prestige link?"

She smiled — faint, knowing.

"It doesn't just raise your visibility. It initiates a story."

"The system's already tracking it. The students are already speculating.