What Secret Society Exists In 'Blackmore University'?

I just finished binge-reading 'Blackmore University', and the secret societies there are wild. The most prominent is 'The Ebon Circle', a shadowy group that dates back to the university's founding. They operate like a modern-day Illuminati, pulling strings behind every major event on campus. Members are chosen based on bloodlines tied to the university's original benefactors. Their rituals involve ancient texts hidden in the library's restricted section, and they have a creepy obsession with owl symbolism. The society's inner circle allegedly practices forbidden alchemy, turning lead into gold and extending their lifespans unnaturally. Freshmen who receive their black-feathered invitation letters either become pawns or disappear from campus records entirely.

As someone who analyzes occult themes in literature, 'Blackmore University' presents one of the most intricate secret society structures I've seen. The Ebon Circle dominates the narrative, but there's also 'The Silver Quill'—a rebel faction of professors and students who archive the university's darkest secrets. They maintain hidden tunnels beneath the chemistry building where they store evidence of human experiments conducted in the 1940s.

The most fascinating aspect is how these societies intersect. The Ebon Circle controls the administration while The Silver Quill manipulates student journalism. Their war plays out through coded messages in the campus newspaper and sabotage during academic competitions. The protagonist gets caught between them after discovering both groups descend from rival branches of a 12th-century hermetic order. This explains why their conflict centers around possession of 'The Blackmore Cipher', an encrypted ledger containing formulas for transmuting human consciousness.

The novel subtly suggests a third, older society called 'The Duskwardens' who protect something buried beneath the clocktower. Their symbols appear carved into forgotten corners of the architecture, and their few remaining members seem to age backward. This layered approach makes the university feel like a living puzzlebox of conspiracies.

'Blackmore University' turns secret societies into character-defining forces. The Ebon Circle isn't just some club—it reshapes members' personalities through rituals involving ink made from midnight lilies. Initiates report losing memories of their childhood while gaining eerie talents like reading Latin instinctively. The society's hierarchy mirrors chess pieces, with 'Knights' handling enforcement and 'Bishops' conducting unethical research.

What chilled me was how they weaponize academia. Members receive tailored syllabi that gradually replace normal coursework with occult studies. By junior year, their transcripts show perfect grades in classes that don't exist. The society even has its own grading system called 'The Blackmark Scale', where students earn points by sabotaging rivals. The protagonist's roommate vanishes after scoring too high on this scale, reappearing later as a hollowed-out version of himself who quotes 17th-century grimoires during normal conversations.